The Gunny's Son
by fredesrojo
Summary: Jibbs AU. What if Gibbs had other family besides Shannon and Kelly? When Shannon's younger sister is killed, Gibbs gets a responsibility he never thought he'd have again, the chance to be a father.
1. Chapter 1

Family Secrets

It was starting out like a typical Monday for Washington, D.C. in the middle of fall. It was cold enough to cause the breaths of the men and women hurrying about the sprawling metropolis to fog up, and a slight breeze rustled through the city streets. Leroy Jethro Gibbs stood in line in his favorite coffee shop, waiting somewhat impatiently for his usual order. He finally received his coffee with a happy sigh, jamming his free hand deep into his pocket as he walked the two blocks to the NCIS office, taking a shortcut through the evidence garage.

He took a long drink of his coffee as the elevator doors opened on the bullpen floor, striding out in the direction of his desk, grunting a vague 'hello' to his team as he passed. "DiNozzo, we got anything?"

Tony finished chewing the bite of burrito he had before speaking. "No, Boss, no cases right now. Director Shepard stopped by your desk on her way in, though."

Gibbs looked up from his computer, his eyebrows raised. "She say anything?"

"No, I asked if she needed you for anything, she said no." Tony shrugged, going back to his breakfast.

Gibbs gave a vague grunt, returning his focus to the computer in front of him. The team worked in relative silence for the next few hours, catching up on back paperwork. Gibbs finished off his second coffee of the day with a sigh, standing and grabbing his jacket. "Goin' for coffee. Call if anything comes up."

Tony, Ziva, and McGee hardly looked up as they all gave answers in the affirmative as Gibbs headed to the elevator. They did, however, look up when Director Jenny Shepard walked into the bullpen a few moments later, frowning at Gibbs' empty desk. "Coffee run, I assume, Agent DiNozzo?"

Tony quickly minimized the game he had been playing, looking up to give her a charming smile. "Yes, ma'am. He should be back in a few minutes or so."

"Hm. I'll just wait, then." The corner of Jenny's mouth twitched in an almost imperceptible smirk as she walked over and took a seat behind Gibbs' desk, crossing her legs.

All four of them looked up as the elevator doors opened with the customary 'ding', looking considerably surprised when a silver haired older man that was _not_ Gibbs exited, followed by a rather harried looking woman. The man looked around, before walking over to Gibbs' team, who were the only people in the bullpen at the time. "Pardon me, you wouldn't happen to know where Leroy Gibbs is, would you? I'm pretty sure his office is supposed to be here." He glanced around again, looking slightly hesitant.

Jenny stood, coughing politely. "Well, sir, the only agent we know of with a last name of Gibbs goes by Jethro, not Leroy, but, this is his desk. May I ask who you might be?"

The silver haired man gave a wry smile, turning towards Jenny to focus his bright blue eyes on her. "Name's Jackson Gibbs. I'm Leroy's father. It would make sense that he wouldn't go by his own name, he always did like to be difficult."

"Difficult, Jack? You were the one who carted around a damn Winchester to keep me in line." Gibbs spoke from behind Jackson, having come up the stairs rather than the elevator.

"Yeah. Let that be a lesson in parenting. Tell a kid he can't have a rifle, and he grows up to be a sniper." Jackson Gibbs turned around to stare at his son. "Your phone not work anymore? I've been trying to get a hold of you for two days now."

"Fell in some paint stripper." Gibbs shrugged nonchalantly, walking around his father and the woman to move over to his desk, raising his eyebrow at Jenny. "What's so urgent that you drove all the way to D.C.? I was just home two weeks ago."

Jackson Gibbs winced slightly, looking apologetic. "Ah, Leroy, maybe we ought to take this some—" He was cut off by the harried looking younger woman, who stepped in front of him, walking over to Gibbs' desk, where she set her briefcase down, pulling out a sheaf of papers, which she handed over to Gibbs.

"Mr. Gibbs, you've been named the sole executor of Sarah Kelly Collins' last will and testament, including the management of her estate until her son is of age."

Jethro's face took on a look as if he had been sucker-punched as he sank down in his chair, staring down at the papers in his hands. "Sarah's…will?" He looked up at his father, utterly confused.

Jackson swallowed, a pained look crossing his face. "Sarah…she was killed in a car accident out on the turnpike three days ago."

Gibbs's gaze moved back to the papers in front of him, his eyes slightly unfocused. "Crash…" He looked up, alarm flashing across his features. "J.J.?"

"He's fine, Leroy, he was spendin' the day in the store with me. He's right downstairs, with one of the other Social Services people, sleeping." Jackson moved over closer to his son's desk, grasping his shoulder in support. "Sarah insisted that you be the one to take J.J., had this will written a few months ago, said she wanted to make sure he'd be taken care of." He squeezed his shoulder lightly, lowering his voice slightly. "I'm sorry, Leroy."

The woman cleared her throat quietly, obtaining Gibbs' gaze again. "Mr. Gibbs, sir, your father is correct. Miss Collins' will names you as the legal guardian of Jacob Christopher Jethro Collins in the event of her death. Unless you choose not to take custody of the boy, and then Social Services will place him in an appropriate foster home."

"No." Gibbs voice was deadly quiet, shaking his head as if to clear his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, sir?"

"He's not going into some damn foster home. I'll take him." Gibbs returned his gaze to the sheaf of papers, rifling through. "Where am I supposed to sign this thing?"

The woman coughed quietly, moving around his desk to help him with the papers, shifting Jackson out of her way. Jackson looked up at Gibbs' team and Jenny, who all looked shell shocked. Jenny regained her composure first, walking over closer to Jackson, lowering her voice to a murmur. "Pardon me, Mr. Gibbs, but, I…what's going on?"

Jackson managed a pained smile, taking her elbow and leading her a little farther away from his son's desk before he spoke. "I…well, I'm sorry, ma'am, but it's not really my place to explain any more than a good friend of Leroy's died earlier this week, and now he'll be taking custody of her son. I didn't catch your name, though, ma'am."

"Jenny, Jenny Shepard. I'm Le—Gibbs' boss, the Director of NCIS." She twisted her hands in front of her for a few moments, glancing over to where Gibbs sat, signing off on the large stack of legal papers.

"Jenny…ah, I see." Jackson looked at her, recognition flashing in his blue eyes. "Well, that explains a lot."

"What?"

"Ah, nothing. Who are these other people?" He quickly avoided her question, looking around at Gibbs' team with interest.

"Special Agents Anthony DiNozzo and Timothy McGee, also known as Tony and McGee, and Mossad Officer Ziva David, who usually goes by her first name." Jenny eyed him shrewdly. "Jethro never mentioned a father, or any friends from his hometown."

"That's because they're none of your business, Jen." Gibbs spoke from just over her shoulder. "My family, my friends. I wasn't aware I had to tell you my life story, Direc-tor."

Jackson spoke quietly, clapping a hand to his son's shoulder again. "Leroy…she was just askin' a question, there's no need to rip her head off."

Jethro shook his father's hand off, giving Jen a mild glare before turning around fully to face his father. "Where's J.J.?"

"I'll go get him, Lee. He's been sleeping downstairs, sleep's been really the only thing we can get him to do to calm down." Jackson let out a soft sigh. "He's been asking for you, he's worried himself sick about something." With that parting comment, he turned and followed the woman to the elevator, calling quietly over his shoulder. "Leroy, I'll get him and bring him back up here, alright?"

Jethro ran a hand over his face with a long sigh, leaning back against the side of his desk. "Jen…I didn't mean to snap at you like that, it was out of line." He took a deep breath, standing up and moving over to his desk drawer, pulling a few different items out and setting them on his desk. He looked up as the elevator doors opened again, watching as his father exited, carrying a small brown haired boy in his arms.

Jackson walked back over to Gibbs' desk, moving carefully so as not to wake the boy. "Leroy," He whispered, looking at his slightly taller son. "Why don't you take him, see if you can wake him up? I think him seeing you might do him a world of good."

Jethro nodded, carefully taking the sleeping boy from his father, nudging his shoulder lightly in an attempt to wake him up. "J.J….Hey, J.J., c'mon, buddy, it's time to wake up."

The little boy stirred, a small hand coming up to rub the sleep out of his blue grey eyes, blinking as he looked around in confusion. "Huh?" He blinked again, taking stock of his surroundings, before finally focusing on Jethro's face. "Jet!" He sniffed, seeming to be about to start crying. "You okay." He gripped the lapels of Gibbs' jacket tightly, perhaps to reassure himself that Gibbs was, in fact, there. "You didn't leave me like Mummy did."

Jethro looked appropriately surprised; rubbing J.J.'s back carefully to reassure him. "Of course I'm ok, J.J., why wouldn't I be?"

"You an' Mummy promised me you'd never leave, but now Mummy's gone, an' I didn't wanna lose you too." J.J. had tears in his eyes, burying his face in the crook of Jethro's neck.

"J…I didn't…" Jethro trailed off, his voice cracking slightly. He went silent for a few minutes, merely standing there with the small boy in his arms, rubbing his back in slow circles to calm him down. He swallowed hard after a moment, looking up at Jenny, speaking in a low voice so as not to disturb J.J. "Jenny…" He trailed off for a moment, finally resuming his sentence in reasonably fluent French. "_Prendre l'équipe jusqu'à votre bureau, je serai sur là dans quelques minutes pour ceci tous expliquer. Prendre mon papa, aussi._"

Jenny raised her eyebrows, finally shrugging, responding in flawless French. "_Bien, aucun problème._"

The team watched as Gibbs walked off in the direction of the back stairs with J.J., humming a soft tune in his gruff baritone. Jenny turned to the team and Jackson, getting their attention. "If you guys would come with me, please. Agent McGee, maybe you ought to go get Abby and Ducky, I have a feeling that this explanation will need to be heard by them, also."

Tony and Ziva merely glanced at each other and shrugged, following Jenny up the stairs to her office, Tony solicitously allowing Jackson to go ahead of him. McGee appeared at her door a few moments later, leading Abby and Ducky with him. The group waited a few moments longer, until the door opened and Jethro strode in, still carrying J.J. in his arms. He walked over to the conference table, and took a few items from J.J.'s arms and set them on the table. After a murmured conversation with the boy, Jethro finally extracted himself from J.J.'s grip and sat down, allowing the boy to sit on his lap. He took a deep breath and focused on the group gathered in Jenny's office.

"I…haven't been entirely honest with you. Well…no, that's not true, either. Two of you already know about this. Dad, obviously, and Ziva knows because of the dossier she prepared for Mossad." Jethro swallowed, taking another deep breath before continuing. "As I was saying…I've been married _four_ times, divorced three."

Jackson sighed, walking over to his son and leaning against the table next to him, offering silent support. Jenny was again, the first to finish processing through the information Gibbs had just told them. "Wait…so, you…you're not married now, which mean---oh." A pained look flashed across her face, mirroring the expressions of the rest of the group. Abby looked as if she seriously wanted to run over and envelop Gibbs in a hug, but she held back. Ducky's accented voice finally broke the silence again. "Oh, Jethro, I'm so very sorry. I had no idea..." He trailed off a moment, hesitant to continue. "When, was this?"

"Nearly fifteen years ago." He paused for a moment, reaching to shove an old leather-bound album out into the middle of the table. "I---I mean, they died fifteen years ago. We got married March 18th, 1982, three days before I shipped off for my second round of Basic. Her name was Shannon." He smiled briefly, gesturing to the photo album, which Jenny stepped forward and took after a moment, holding it where the entire group could see. Abby smiled slightly, looking up from the wedding picture to Gibbs. "Gibbs, she was beautiful." Her expression shifted solemnly. "I know your rule about apologies, but I am sorry for you, Gibbs, she looks like she was a wonderful lady."

"Yeah, she was probably the best thing to happen to me, other than Kelly." J.J. looked up at this, tilting his head back far enough to look at Gibbs. "Cousin Kelly?"

Jethro smiled slightly, absentmindedly ruffling the boy's hair. "Yeah, J, cousin Kelly."

He looked up as Jenny and Abby let out soft gasps, having moved on from the wedding pictures in the album. "Jethro?"

"That's my daughter, Kelly. She was…eight." His voice cracked audibly, and he stared at the ground for a while, blinking rapidly. Finally, he seemed to collect himself enough to continue. "Shannon and Kelly died in '91, on the last day of operations in Desert Storm. Shannon witnessed a murder a few weeks after I shipped out, and NIS were the ones assigned to protect her and Kel until the trial. Their driver was shot and killed, and they died in the car crash. I was still over in Iraq. My squad got blown up fighting our way out of a minefield the day after the notification came. I…I was in a coma, and honorably discharged after that. I came home to D.C., and Mike Franks, from NIS, came to talk to me. I started working here a few months later."

Jenny smiled as she looked up at Gibbs, walking over to embrace him. "She looks just like you, Jethro."

Jackson let out a rumbling laugh. "Kelly was a lot like Leroy, too. She had to have been the most stubborn eight year old I'd ever met."

Jethro smiled faintly, blinking back tears. "Kelly was…the best thing that ever happened to me." He laughed quietly, nodding at the album. "She did get the best parts of Shannon, though. Caring, quiet, loving, always tried to see the best in people."

Jackson nudged his son's shoulder slightly. "You know, Leroy, J.J. kinda reminds me of Kelly, too." The young boy perked up noticeably at being mentioned, turning in Jethro's lap to look at him. "I'm like cousin Kelly, Unca Jack?"

Jethro bit back a smirk, grinning as he hugged the boy a little closer, a chuckle rumbling in his chest. "You're a lot like your cousin, J."

"Jet?" J.J. turned back to look at Jethro, his voice hesitant.

"Yeah, J?"

"Is mummy up there with Aunt Shan an' cousin Kelly?" J.J.'s blue-grey eyes filled with tears as he spoke, still staring at Jethro.

"Y—Yeah, J, your mum's up there in heaven with Shan and Kel." His voice cracked again as he answered. After a moment of quiet, he abruptly turned the chair and lifted J.J. down, glancing over at his father. "J, why don't you go with Jack for a while? I've got to take care of a few things."

J.J. shook his head vehemently, clinging tightly to Gibbs' arm. "No! If I go, you'll go away like mummy!" His eyes filled with tears again as he clung on tenaciously, his shoulders jerking with small sobs.

Gibbs paled, quickly moving to lift the boy back into his arms, murmuring softly into his ear. "J, it's alright, I'm not going anywhere, I promise. J, calm down, buddy, I'm not leaving. It's alright, shhh, J, I'm not goin' anywhere, I promise, I'm right here, it's okay." He rocked back and forth in the chair, humming again in his gruff baritone to calm the boy down.

Jackson looked at the rest of the group standing in the room, standing up to walk over to them. "Since Leroy's gonna be calming J.J. down for the next little bit, I'll go ahead and explain how he's related to all this, as best I can. J.J.'s mother, Sarah, was Shannon's younger sister, which made Leroy her brother-in-law. He never dropped that role, even after Shan and Kel's deaths, because Sarah didn't really have anyone left in the world. Her mother died before Leroy met Shannon, and her father passed away a year or so after Shannon's death. Sarah dated some guy, almost six years ago, ended up pregnant with J.J., and Leroy stepped in to help her out when the dirtbag left. He's basically the closest thing that boy's got to a father. Sarah got all…I don't know, worried, a few months ago, and had this will drawn up to make sure J.J. was taken care of."

"So…J.J. is short for what?" Abby tilted her head inquiringly. "And why are you calling Gibbs Leroy?"

Jackson raised his eyebrow, a soft chuckle rumbling in his voice. "J.J. is short for Jacob Jethro, and I call Leroy, Leroy, because he's my son and I'm allowed to call him what I want."

"You're Gibbs' dad? McGee! You didn't tell me Papa Gibbs was here!" Abby scowled, punching McGee in the shoulder sharply.

Jenny bit back a laugh, giving Abby a mild look to quiet her. "Jackson Gibbs, meet Abby Scutio, our forensic scientist. And also, our M.E., Doctor Donald Mallard, usually known as Ducky."

Jackson stepped forward to shake Ducky's hand and then pressed a light kiss to the back of Abby's offered hand, his bright blue eyes, startlingly similar and yet completely different from his son's, sparkling with something like amusement. "Pleased to meet you, Abby, Ducky. I go by Jack, usually." He smiled a crooked smile that he had obviously passed on to his son, turning slightly to look over his shoulder. "Leroy?"

Gibbs looked up from his humming, his gaze focusing on his father again. "Hm?"

"Why don't you bring J.J. over here, introduce him to your friends?" Jackson gave him a pointed look, his hands moving quickly to sign something to Jethro.

Gibbs frowned slightly, and then nodded, allowing a small grin to tug at the corners of his mouth. "Hey, J, c'mon over here with me, I want you to meet a few of my friends, okay?" He waited until he felt a nod against his chin, standing up carefully and walking over to the group. "J, you've gotta pick your head up, okay, bud?"

J.J. picked his head up, sniffling as he rubbed his nose on his arm. He looked around the group, his eyes wary. Jethro mirrored his father's crooked smile, nudging J.J. lightly with his shoulder as he introduced him to Jenny. "J, this is my…boss, and a good friend of mine, Jenny."

J.J. took her offered hand after a moment's hesitation, offering a guarded smile, his eyebrows contracting together as he repeated the name. "Je---Je..n..ny. Jenny." His smile grew wider as he correctly pronounced the name, transforming into a slightly bashful grin as he turned his head back into Gibbs' shoulder, his next statement an almost inaudible murmur. "You're pretty."

Jenny laughed, giving his small hand a light squeeze. "Thank you very much, J.J., that was a lovely compliment."

Gibbs rolled his eyes, moving on from Jenny to Abby, nudging J.J. with his shoulder. "Alright, Casanova, moving on. This is Abby, or Abs."

Abby gave J.J. a bright smile as she took his hand, shaking it vigorously. "Nice to meet you, J.J.!"

J.J. grinned again, trying her name out. "Abby. Thatsa cool name."

Gibbs let out another rumbling chuckle, shifting over to Ziva. "Okay, now, J, this is Ziva."

The boy's face contorted into an almost comical frown as he sounded out the new name, stumbling over the word. "Ziv…Viz…Viza?" He winced apologetically, glancing nervously at the Israeli. "Your name's hard."

Ziva laughed softly, shaking his hand briefly. "That is quite alright, J.J. You may call me…Zee. That is much easier to say, no?"

"Zee." J.J.'s face broke into a wide grin again, nodding. Gibbs mouthed a 'thank you' to her as he stepped over to McGee. "Okay, now that you've got that one…this is Tim, or McGee."

"Mi---M--…Tim." J.J. grinned proudly, looking at McGee for assurance. McGee smiled back, clasping the little hand in his own and shaking a few times. "Nice to meet you, J.J."

Tony was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet, eager to be introduced next. Gibbs rolled his eyes, turning to face Tony. "J, this is Anthony, or Tony."

J.J. grinned mischievously, taking the offered hand. "Anth---Ton----'Tonio!" He stared Tony down, as if daring him to contradict the nickname.

Tony smiled and shrugged good-naturedly, tilting his head to the side as if her were thinking about it. "Eh, 'Tonio will work just fine, little man."

Gibbs smiled and adjusted J.J.'s weight in his arms slightly before introducing him to Ducky. "Okay, now, J, last one. This is my old friend Ducky."

"Ducky…quack quack!" J.J. giggled, looking at the doctor.

Ducky's face creased in a wide smile, his accented voice hiding a hint of laughter. "That I am, my boy. Pleasure to meet you, young J.J." He shook the little boy's hand, smiling at the happy and relieved look that crossed Jethro's face.

Gibbs walked over and set J.J. down on the table, leaning against it next to him. "Alright, now, quiz time. Can you name everyone back to me?"

J.J. nodded vigorously, his small hand pointing to each person in turn. "Jenny, Abby, Zee, Tim, 'Tonio, Ducky, Unca Jack, Jet, 'an me, J.J.!" He looked around, obviously pleased with himself.

Jethro laughed quietly again, mussing up J.J.'s hair. "You did a good job, bud." He jerked his head in a small nod to Jackson, who walked over to stand on the boy's other side, as Jethro bent down to murmur softly in J.J.'s ear. "J, I've gotta talk to Jenny for just a minute. I'll be right over there, by the window, okay? Uncle Jack will be right here, and you can still see me, promise." He waited for the small nod of agreement, standing to walk over to the window on the other side of the office, giving Jenny a slight nod of his head to indicate she should follow. After ensuring that he was still well within J.J.'s line of sight, he turned to Jenny, taking a breath to speak, but she beat him to the punch, her amused voice sounding quietly.

"Jet? Never would have thought you to be one for nicknames, Jethro." Her green eyes flashed with amusement, the brow over her right eye raised.

"You'd call me Jet, too, if you were five years old and couldn't work out a name with that many confusing syllables. Closest he's ever got is Jefrow." Gibbs rolled his eyes, glancing over at J.J., who sat next to an excited Abby, listening to her ramblings with a faint grin on his face. He returned his gaze to Jenny's face, looking somewhat apologetic again. "I know my usual rule for apologies, but I think I owe you one. Hell, I probably owe the whole team an apology, but you most of all. You know me better than most, and you're my boss. I hid the file on their deaths ages ago when I joined NCIS, but, still, that's something at least you should have known."

She shook her head vehemently. "There's no need for apologies, Jethro. You understandably wanted to keep that part of your past private." She glanced over at the little boy sitting on the conference table in her office, a soft smile gracing her features. "He obviously looks up to you, Jethro." She laughed quietly as J.J. directed a small smirk at Tony, who had presumably just said something. "Look, he even smirks like you."

Gibbs smiled, his eyes focused on the young boy. "Yeah. J.J.'s a great kid." He ducked his head, letting out an embarrassed laugh at the small compliment she paid him. "Not really sure why he looks up to me, though. I'm not the greatest role model." He shook his head quickly, re-ordering his thoughts. "But that's not why I'm over here. I'm going to need to take the next few days off." He trailed off for a moment, clearing his throat. "Sarah's funeral is in two days, and I need to get J.J. settled in at my place." Jethro was blinking a good deal more rapidly than he usually did, his bright blue eyes focused on the ground. "I'm not really sure when I can come back to work…J.J.'s having difficulty…well, separation anxiety might be a better description for it, but you saw for yourself, he won't let me leave the room."

Jenny gave him a supportive smile, setting her small hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "You take all the time you need, Jethro." She hesitated for just a moment, plowing on with her sentence after a breath. "And if you need any help, at all, you know we're all here for you, right?"

Gibbs nodded, finally managing to reign in his emotions, offering Jenny a soft smile. "I---thanks, Jenny." He rubbed the back of his head with a sigh, walking with her back over to J.J.

"Hey, J, buddy, we're gonna go now, you're staying with me, okay?" The boy looked up from his conversation with Ducky, a wide smile creasing his face as he latched onto Gibbs again.

* * *

**_-A/n: Okay, so...I'm getting really bad at updating Astronomical Odds, I know, I've just hit a MAJOR wall in the planning. I know how I want it to end, but I can't figure out how to get there from where I'm at now. _**

**_I DO, however, have a few oneshots planned, sometime soon._**

**_Anyways, moving on. This little piece came to me after watching Gibbs around Zach in Honor Code, and, well, since I didn't want Zach to lose his dad, I figured I'd give Gibbs a nephew instead. I'm not entirely sure how long it's gonna be, but, eventually, this will turn into a JIBBS story. (Possibility for a Gibblet? I dunno.) There might be potential for a series involving Gibbs, Jenny, & J.J._**

**_Oh, and for those not enamored with French, a translation. (I apologize if I'm a bit off, French is a little rusty.) :_**

___Prendre l'équipe jusqu'à votre bureau, je serai sur là dans quelques minutes pour ceci tous expliquer. Prendre mon papa, aussi.-- _Take the team to your office, I'll be on there in a few minutes to explain all this. Take my dad, too.

_Bien, aucun problème.-- _Okay, no problem.

**_Right, so, there you go! Review, please, tell me what you think._**

**_-Meg_**


	2. Chapter 2

**_A/n: Right, so, here's the second chapter of my little story. I've decided to fast forward a few weeks, it's extremely difficult to write out how a five year old would be feeling at his mother's funeral, so, timeline wise, this chapter occurs a few weeks after the funeral, give or take a day or two. _**

* * *

Nerf Guns and Lunch Dates

"Yahhhhhhh!"

Jenny and Ziva tensed as they emerged from Ziva's Mini in Gibbs' driveway, hearing the hoarse yell emanating from the house. Ziva placed a hand on her sidearm, automatically moving in front of the Director as they approached the house cautiously. Jenny rolled her eyes at her friend, reaching to open the door carefully, both of their heads peering around.

_Shup! Shup!_

"Ow. What the….?" Jenny brought a hand up to her forehead, peeling off the suction-cup foam dart stuck there. J.J. appeared from his hiding place just beyond the doorway, a brightly colored plastic Nerf gun gripped in his small hands. He grinned, padding over to the door in stocking feet. "Hiya, Jenny, Zee."

Ziva let out a low chuckle, peeling the other dart off of her own forehead. "Hello, J.J." She followed Jenny into the house, closing the door behind her. "Where is Gibbs? Sorry, I mean, Jet. Where is Jet?"

J.J. shrugged, taking the darts back and reloading his Nerf gun. "Dunno. We're playin' a game, he's hidin' somewhere." He adjusted the Velcro vest he was wearing, which had a few separate targets located on it in different places. "You could try the kitchen, I spose. He almost shooted me in there a few minutes ago." With that parting remark, he padded off silently into the darkened recesses of the home, hiding skillfully.

Jenny laughed quietly, removing her heels and setting them next to the door before she walked to the kitchen, commenting over her shoulder to Ziva. "Ah, boys and their toys. Jethro's obviously trained him well. Five years old, and he moves like a trained sniper."

Ziva grinned as she followed, her boots joining Jenny's next to the front door. "Abby calls him a Mini-Gibbs." She entered the kitchen, hopping up onto the counter. _"Alors, où croyez-vous qu'il se cache?"_

"Hmm…" Jenny peered around, her eyes scanning every detail. _"Sous-sol, peut-être. Première proposition: Il est probablement là, ou peut-être ... l'une des chambres."_

Ziva had been rooting around in the living room as Jenny spoke, returning with two more of the brightly colored toys, and two vests. _"Que diriez-vous nous uniformiser les règles du jeu?"_

Jenny smiled, taking one of the Nerf guns from Ziva and slipping the vest over her button-down. They carefully and quietly moved around the house, searching for Gibbs. Ziva had leapfrogged ahead of Jenny towards Gibbs' bedroom, stopping abruptly. "Jenny…"

_Shup! Shup! Shup! _

Gibbs rolled out from under the bed, pumping the Nerf blaster as he shot foam dart towards them. Ziva took one in a target on her shoulder, quickly plastering herself against the wall as Jenny crouched, firing a few darts at Gibbs, who had rolled past the doorway and was heading for the connecting bathroom. J.J. suddenly appeared from the adjoining room, tackling Gibbs with a loud yell. "Rahhhhh!"

"Ooof…jeez, Jay…alright, alright, Uncle, you win this time, kiddo." Jethro wheezed out sharply as J.J. landed on him, setting his Nerf gun to the side and holding his hands up in surrender. J.J. grinned proudly, thumping his godfather on the chest once before he stood up.

"Well, well, Jethro, never would have figured you to be the Dart Tag type." Jenny shook her head as she walked into his bedroom, leaning against the edge of his bed, her voice teasing.

"There's quite a bit you don't know about me, Jen." Jethro got back to his feet, rubbing his shoulder where it had connected sharply with the bed. "Where'd you two come from?"

Ziva leaned against the doorframe, plucking the foam dart off of her shoulder pad and twirling it absentmindedly between her fingers. "We…thought you two might like some company for lunch. Or…Abby wanted Jenny to check up on you two, and she needed a detail. Take your pick."

J.J. perked up at the mention of food, glancing over at Jenny. "Lunch? Can we go out for lunch?" He turned his gaze on Gibbs, questioning.

Jethro scratched the back of his head, shrugging. "Yeah, that's fine, we haven't been grocery shopping anyways." He glanced down at himself, a slight blush coloring his face as he realized he still wore his pajamas. "Just, um…let me change out of my pajamas."

Jenny bit back a small smirk, pointedly avoiding Ziva's amused gaze as she watched Jethro head for the closet, discarding the wrinkled t-shirt he wore.

"J.J, are you dressed properly to be going out?" Gibbs re-emerged from the closet, shirtless with jeans on, threading a belt through the loops in his pants. He walked over to the dresser and rifled through the shirts there, finally pulling up what looked like a plain black one with a satisfied grunt.

J.J. rolled his eyes. "Umm…I'm wearin' jeans an' my superhero shirt. Is that okay?" Gibbs walked out the door, tugging the black shirt over his head as he passed. "Yeah, I suppose that's fine." He glanced over his shoulder, seeing Jenny and Ziva still standing in his bedroom. "You comin'?"

Jenny hid another smirk, discarding her gun and vest off to the side and following Ziva, Gibbs, and J.J. down the hall. Jethro pulled a well worn leather jacket out of the hall closet, slipping it over his broad shoulders as he handed J.J. a small black hooded zip-up.

J.J. toed on a scuffed pair of Converses, waiting as Gibbs cast about in the pile of shoes, finally coming up with a similarly battered and considerably larger pair of the same shoes, jamming them on his feet. "Alright. Ready?" He grinned at his nephew as the boy nodded, walking out the front door.

"Hey, Jet, can we take the 'Bee?" J.J. fidgeted as he looked up at Jethro, a wide smile creasing his small face.

"I…well, okay, sure." Gibbs shrugged, glancing over at Jenny and Ziva. "You guys mind? I'll drive, so we're not taking two cars."

Jenny raised her eyebrows, giving the old grey truck sitting in his driveway a pointed glance. "Jethro, as much as I like breaking traffic laws, I'm not riding in the back of your beater truck to lunch."

"Who said we're takin' the truck?" Jethro and J.J. walked over to a covered mass sitting next to the truck. "My dad brought this from Stillwater. I've been restoring it since…well, since before I joined the Corps." He swept the cover off of the car with a flourish, his boyish grin mirroring J.J.'s.

Jenny and Ziva gaped at the yellow machine, detailed with a black stripe bisecting the hood of the car. "You…have a muscle car."

Jethro's eyes twinkled brightly with boyish enthusiasm. "Yep." The 1971 Dodge Hemi Challenger sat gleaming, the culmination of nearly four decades of work.

"Of course you would." Jenny muttered, shaking her head as she adjusted her purse strap, walking over to the car. "Okay, fine, we'll ride in your new _toy_."

J.J. cheered happily, clambering into the backseat of the car and buckling himself in. Ziva climbed in after him with some hesitation, glancing at Jenny before she got in. Jethro winked as he walked over to the passenger side, opening Jenny's door for her, his gruff voice barely hiding a chuckle. "Director."

Jenny rolled her eyes, giving him a pointed stare. Gibbs merely laughed, closing the door and walking around to slide in on his own side, starting the ignition with a rumble.

"Where we goin'?" Gibbs backed the car out of the driveway slowly, staring at J.J. as he twisted around to look out the back.

"I dunno…" J.J. shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. "Can we turn the music on?"

Jenny laughed softly, reaching over to turn the radio on, stopping when she noticed the model, which looked out of place in the vintage car. "Jethro, since when do you have a brand new sound system and CD player installed in your car?"

"Since J.J. likes listening to music." Jethro drove along, disregarding traffic laws as was his custom, pushing the Dodge through its paces. "Any suggestions for lunch? I'm about to just head to McDonald's."

Jenny shook her head vehemently, turning the radio on, the strains of a reasonably popular rock band Audioslave pouring out of the speakers. "No, Jethro, we're not going to McDonald's. Why don't we go to that diner…over near headquarters, you remember?"

"B &K? Alright, sure, that sounds fine." They drove along in relative silence, Gibbs drumming along to the song on the steering wheel.

* * *

"I'll have a double cheeseburger and fries. And a root beer to drink. Thanks." Gibbs lounged back in the booth after ordering, nodding for J.J. and the ladies to do the same.

"Jet, can I get a root beer float?" J.J. glanced up shyly at Jethro, his small fingers tapping at a picture on the menu. He grinned happily when Gibbs nodded. "I wanna cheeseburger, 'an fries, 'an a root beer float, please."

Jenny frowned at the menu as Ziva ordered a chili dog and fries, unsure of what to get herself. "I'll have um…"

"She'll have a cheeseburger with Swiss instead of cheddar, and a half order of fries with a root beer to drink." Gibbs spoke up calmly, giving the waitress a smile as she wrote the order down and walked away. He looked over at Jen, raising his eyebrows at her look. "What? That's what you always order here, Jen."

"You remembered my order from…what, almost seven years ago?" Jenny laughed and shook her head slightly. "That's either nice or just really odd, Jethro."

"How is my remembering your order odd?" Jethro sighed moodily, slumping in his seat a little further as the waitress stopped by with their drinks. "Sheesh, I'm just trying to be nice, and you call me odd."

J.J. frowned between them, an amused glint sparkling in his blue-grey eyes. "You guys must like each other."

Jenny nearly choked on the sip of root beer she had taken, staring at the little boy who had spoken so bluntly. "I….what makes you think that, J.J.?"

"Jet 'members a lotta stuff 'bout you. 'An you keep comin' over to visit for dinner." J.J. grinned mischievously, taking a long sip of his root beer float. "You guys act like Mummy and Andrew used to."

"I…we do not, J. What are you talking about?" Gibbs spluttered on his root beer, giving the boy a considerably milder version of his usual glare. "Who's Andrew?"

"Mummy's date-guy. He started comin' over after you stopped visiting 'cause of work." J.J. shrugged, taking another long sip of the float. "He was pretty cool. Mummy kissed him a few times, but not like she kissed you or Unca Jack." He grinned slyly, peeking over the lip of his glass at Jenny and Gibbs, who sat next to each other, a slight blush coloring both sets of cheeks. "I betcha you two's kisseded like that before."

Jenny and Gibbs were saved the awkwardness of answering by the waitress, who breezed over with their meals. Ziva exchanged an amused glance with J.J., who dug into his cheeseburger happily, taking a large bite. "So…didja?"

Gibbs slowly chewed the bite of burger in his mouth, finally swallowing and looking up, speaking in a would-be innocent voice. "Did we what?"

"Kiss, duh." J.J. munched on a few fries, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

Jethro buried his smirk in taking a bite out of his cheeseburger, shrugging as his gaze flicked over to Jenny. Jenny's cheek flushed embarrassedly, giving him a mild glare. "No, J.J., we aren't like that. I'm just good friends with your…I'm just good friends with Jet."

"Uh huh." J.J. rolled his eyes and gave Ziva a knowing glance, taking another large bite of cheeseburger. They ate in silence for a bit, the sounds of chewing and sipping of drinks filling the air, until J.J. perked up, cocking an ear to the strains of a country song flowing from the speakers set around the diner. "Jet, they're playin' your song!"

Jethro frowned in confusion, tilting his head to listen for a moment, after which he gave an exasperated sigh. "That….song. Jay, it's not _my _song."

Jenny's brow furrowed as she listened, a soft laugh escaping her. "Is this…Cowboy Casanova?"

"Yup. Mum said this song reminded her of Jet, always made her laugh when it came on the radio." J.J. laughed, dipping a French fry in ketchup.

Jethro took in Jenny and Ziva's amused glances, glaring down at his food in embarrassment. "It's not _my_ song, J, your mum just said that it sounded like me, it was a joke."

Ziva cocked her head to better hear the song, a distinctly amused smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. "I do not know, Gibbs…this song does describe you…to an extent."

"I…what?! How does this…song describe me, Ziver?" Jethro said exasperatedly, looking up at her.

"Gibbs, you have been married four times, no? Along with the girlfriends or whatever you call them, you have developed a…reputation, I think, is the word, of being a…well, nothing like Tony, but, still, you cannot deny the similarities between you two. Tony is more of a serial dater, though." Ziva leaned back in the booth, her arms folding across her chest, unruffled by the glare he sent her way.

Jenny laughed again, nudging his shoulder slightly. "Jethro, we're merely joking around with you, as I'm sure Sarah was when she said this song reminded her of you."

"And to be honest, Gibbs, I was…what do you say, pulling your chain?" Ziva piped in with a knowing grin, her dark eyes amused.

Gibbs finally relaxed with a sigh, munching on a few fries. The comfortable silence returned as they ate, making small comments every now and then. J.J. fidgeted around as they waited for Jenny to finish, scanning the diner with his usual boyish enthusiasm.

"We ready to go yet?"

Jenny chuckled, chewing the last bite of her burger and finishing off her root beer. "Yes, J.J., I think we're ready to go." She made call the waitress for the check, but her hand was stayed by Jethro's larger one. He smiled politely at the waitress when she dropped off the check, pulling a 50 out of his wallet and telling her to keep the change, shaking his head at Ziva and Jenny's protests. "Let's go, you two need to get the car to drive back to NCIS."

* * *

The ride back to Gibbs' home was only punctuated by the sounds emanating from the radio, as J.J. had leaned forward and turned the thing on as soon as Jethro started the car. Gibbs drove with his usual cavalier disregard for traffic laws, seemingly unaffected by Jenny's irritated glares from the passenger seat. He pulled up in his driveway, shifting the car into park and going around and opening Jenny's door, a smile playing across his lips.

"So, um…thanks for lunch." Jenny leaned against the back fender of the yellow Challenger, watching as J.J. clambered up onto the back of Jethro's truck. Gibbs shrugged off the thanks with a grunt, mumbling softly. "No big deal, you guys drove all the way out here to have lunch with us, it was the least I could do."

J.J. had managed to climb his way up to the top of the cab, swinging his legs back and forth aimlessly. "Jet, can we go to your work place? I wanta see Ducky."

Jethro glanced over at Jenny and then shrugged. "Sure, we can go visit for a bit." He walked over to the truck, lifiting J.J. down. "Go get your backpack and my cell phone, and then we'll go. We'll see if everyone wants to come over for dinner tonight, too. That sound good?"

J.J. nodded vigorously and tore off towards the house. Jethro watched him with a slight smile on his face, starting slightly when Jenny laid her hand on his arm, speaking softly. "Is he doing better? With the nightmares? I noticed he doesn't seem to mind being away from you so much anymore."

Gibbs inclined his head in a nod, leaning back against his car again. "Yeah, he's doing a lot better. He's finally started sleeping in his own room again, and we've come to an agreement about me being away." He smiled briefly at Jenny's questioning look. "He's been keeping an eye on my dog tags. Sarah used to do something similar whenever she had to leave for a work trip, she'd leave her watch with him, told J as long as he had the watch, she'd never truly leave, she'd always be there with him in part." His voice was now tinged with melancholy. "So, I gave him the tags and told him the same thing, as long as he has the tags, I'm there with him."

Jenny gave him a gentle smile, her voice still soft as she spotted J.J. sprinting back out of the house, a backpack slung over his small shoulders. "Well, you're doing a great job, Jethro. We can see why Sarah insisted he stay with you." Gibbs ducked his head, gruffly brushing off her compliment, and stepped forward to intercept J.J. before he ran headlong into Jenny.

"Ready to go, sport?" Jethro managed to hitch a vague approximation of his real smile back up on his face as he looked down at J.J., his blue eyes twinkling.

"Yah." J.J. fished Jethro's cell phone out of his jacket pocket, holding it up in his small hand. "Here's your phone, Jet."

Jenny looked closer at the little boy, noting a small bit of chain that peeped out from the neckline of his t-shirt, signifying the presence of Gibbs' dog tags. "So, are we taking two cars, or do you guys just want to ride with us?"

Gibbs laughed, raising his eyebrow at Ziva's Mini. "Considering that I'd have to become a contortionist to fit in that car, we'll follow behind you."

* * *

Ziva walked back into the bullpen with Jenny, laughing quietly at some private joke they shared. Jenny leaned nonchalantly against the divider wall of the bullpen next to her desk as Ziva took a seat, both ignoring Tony's inquisitive glance.

Tony's curiosity finally won out as he stared at them with a cheesy smile plastered on his face. "Have a nice lunch date, Director, Ziva?"

Ziva smirked, leaning back in her chair and lacing her fingers behind her head. "Oh, yes, it was nice. I got to bring along a date, too. He was…what is the expression...cute as a button?"

Her smirk widened as Tony shifted forward in his chair, interested. "You had a _date _date? _Who?_"

Jenny hid a grin, shrugging when DiNozzo turned his gaze on her. " Eh, just, some guy we met. He was pretty cute."

"'Tonio!" The rest of Jenny's comment was cut off by the arrival of Gibbs and J.J., the latter of which rode on the former's shoulders. Gibbs reached up, ducking his head to lift the boy down.

"J-Man! How's tricks, buddy?" Tony grinned, rolling his desk chair around to the front of his desk and raising a hand for a high-five.

"Tricks are for kids." J.J. giggled, slapping Tony a high-five, before turning his attention to the other occupant of the bullpen. "Heya, Mig—Mc—Tim."

McGee looked up from his computer, his face creasing in a smile. "Hi there, J.J." He stood and walked over to give the boy another high-five, looking up at Gibbs. "Good to see you, Boss." His hazel eyes flickered briefly with something bordering on amusement as he glanced over at Ziva and Jenny, questioning. "I take it J.J. is the, ah, date you're talking about, Ziva?"

Tony gasped in outrage, turning to Jenny and Ziva. "You _tricked _me! You made me think you both had some hot lunch date or something!"

"No-ooo, DiNozzo, you misinterpreted Ziva's words." Jenny smirked, drawing out the first word in a lazy drawl, mocking Tony.

"I..but…that's just not…I hate you, both of you." Tony's shoulders slumped dejectedly as he spun in his chair and rolled back behind his desk, pillowing his head in his arms and muffling the last half of his statement. "Frickin' teasin' me all the time."

Gibbs looked distinctly amused as he leaned over Tony's desk to lightly tap the back of his head. "Eh, DiNozzo, you're an easy target." He skirted the group gathered in the center of the bullpen and sank down in his desk chair, watching as his team members and Jenny interacted with J.J., who happily took in all of the extra attention.

"Wow, Gibbs, I'd never figure you to be the biker type. Nice jacket!" The only warning Gibbs got of Abby's arrival was a blur of black off to his left that swept him into a tight hug. "J.J.! You came to visit!"

J.J. grinned, running over to give the Goth a hug. "Hiya, Abby." He walked over and pulled himself into Jethro's lap, fidgeting with a pen he stole from the desk.

Gibbs gave Abby a slightly confused look. "Biker?"

"You know, Gibbs, the big bad biker type, with the old leather jacket and beat up jeans, plus you've already kinda got the whole 'bad boy' vibe, but in a good way, you know? Plus, you did something different with your hair, it's almost…spiky, I like it though, I'm not saying tha—" The rest of her ramblings were cut off as Gibbs reached up to cover her mouth, raising his eyebrows.

"Abs." He gave her a mild glare before removing his hand, thinking through her statements. "Wait…I have a 'bad boy' vibe?"

"Yeah." Jethro looked taken aback, glancing down at the boy in his lap, who had just spoken in unison with Abby. J.J. tilted his head back slightly, looking up at Gibbs. "What? Mum used to say you was a 'bad boy' type. She used to joke with Unca Jack that she…she hoped I wouldn't turn out as much a bad boy as you. Or, at least, that's what I think she said. Dunno. They always talked like this after I was sposta be in bed, I don't think she knew I was listenin'." He grinned cheekily.

Jenny burst out laughing, walking over to lean against Jethro's desk. "She has a point, Jethro. You do kind of give off a 'bad boy' type vibe. Though it might just be the fact that you try to scare off everyone who looks sideways at you, who knows."

Gibbs rolled his eyes, ruffling J.J.'s hair good-naturedly. "Fine, whatever. Still don't see why a busted up leather jacket makes me look like a biker, but, who cares." He tickled J.J.'s side lightly, grinning at the laughs that escaped. "And you, you always said you _wanted_ to grow up like me, budd-o."

J.J. squirmed away from the tickling, sliding back off of Jethro's lap. "Hey, I never said I didn't wanna be like you, Jet, Mum said she didn't want me to be _too much_ like you."

Gibbs hid a small grin at the protest, his blue eyes twinkling with amusement. "Eh, probably for the best, you don't want to turn out _exactly_ like me." He leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice to a stage whisper. "I've got this awful job, with a _really_ boring boss, she's no fun at all."

He and J.J. burst out laughing at the outraged look that flashed on Jenny's face. "I am NOT boring!"

Tony sniggered, disguising it quickly as a bout of coughing when Jenny rounded on him, her eyes flashing. "Er, right, Director, not boring, no."

"I do not find you boring in the least, Jennifer, if it is any consolation." Ducky's accented voice sounded from the back of the bullpen as the Medical Examiner walked in, his blue-grey eyes flashing with amusement. "Ah, Jethro, Jacob, good to see you. I see young Jacob managed to convince you to get a haircut, Jethro, it looks…well, it's not your usual style, but, it looks good."

Gibbs shrugged, running a hand through his shorter, styled hair. "Eh. It's a haircut. Not a big deal." He raised an amused glance to Jenny, who leveled a glare at him.

Jenny continued glaring at Gibbs, looking down when she felt a tug on her pant leg. J.J. stood there, a earnest grin on his face. "I don't think you're boring, Jenny."

Jenny cracked a smile, crouching down to his level and patting his shoulder. "Well, thank you very much, J.J. Would you do me a favor and go spend some time with Ducky? I need to talk to your—I need to talk to Jet about something." J.J. raised an eyebrow, but nodded in agreement, glancing over at Jethro, who inclined his head in a nod, standing to walk over to Jenny.

"_Hned jsem zpátky, jo?_" Gibbs knelt to look at J.J., speaking softly in Czech, his finger reaching out to tap lightly on the hidden dog tags under the boy's shirt. J.J. nodded, murmuring back quietly. "_Ano_."

Jethro nodded, giving the boy a smile, tapping the dog tags one last time as he stood, glancing at Jenny. He gestured to the stairs, walking with her to her office.

* * *

**_A/n: Okay, so, forgot the translations at the beginning of the chapter, sorry._**

**_French translation of the conversation between Jenny and Ziva:_**

___Alors, où croyez-vous qu'il se cache?--_ So where do you think he is hiding?

___Sous-sol, peut-être. Première proposition: Il est probablement là, ou peut-être ... l'une des chambres.-- _Basement, perhaps. First idea: He's probably there, or maybe ... one of the rooms.

___Que diriez-vous nous uniformiser les règles du jeu?--_ How about we level the playing field?

_-----_

**_Czech translation for Gibbs and J.J.:_**

_Hned jsem zpátky, jo?-- _I'll be right back, okay?

_Ano. _- Yes ("Okay"--rough translation)

**_Hopefully, I'll have chapter three up by the end of next week. Please review, tell me what you think!_**

**_-Meg_**


	3. Chapter 3

Discussions and Dinners

"You needed to see me?" Gibbs leaned against the wall in her office, ignoring the chair she offered.

"Well…in a sense, yes. I was going to ask if you thought you needed more time off from work." Jenny leaned back against her desk, staring at him. "And…I was wondering how you're doing."

Jethro shrugged. "I'm fine. And I figure I need maybe a few days more, J.J.'s been doing much better, and he'll be here in childcare anyway, until he starts school, so it's not like he can't come and see me if need be."

Jenny nodded, frowning at the avoidance of her second question. "Jethro, honestly, I know you aren't _fine_." Her brow furrowed. "And since when did you speak Czech?"

He sighed. "Learnt it three years ago, when Sarah's…_boyfriend_ tried to fight her for custody with members of a Czechian crime syndicate. And I _am_ fine, Jen." He held up his hands as her eyes narrowed. "Seriously."

"Jethro, stop lying. You're sitting there playing off things with jokes, but I'm not an idiot. Every time you think J.J. isn't looking, you slip back into some melancholy look. You can't keep this up." Jenny walked over, grabbing his shoulder and pushing him towards the couch. "Sit down, and at least _try_ to talk about this, for once. I know talking isn't a strong suit of yours, but you need to try, for that little boy sitting downstairs. He knows you're hurting, and he thinks it's his fault."

Gibbs sighed again, twining his fingers together, his thumbs tapping against each other in his lap. "I just…it hurts, sometimes, how much he reminds me of Kel, and Shannon, and Sarah. He's got some of the same personality quirks they had that I never really noticed, till they were gone." He managed a halfhearted laugh, bringing a hand up to rub the back of his neck. "Hell, he's even got Kelly's laugh." He swallowed, hard, and then continued. "I just, I know J.J.'s his own person, and I love him for that, but he reminds me of them so much it hurts, and sometimes it's too much to handle."

Jenny blinked, leaning against the edge of the couch and placing her hand on his shoulder again, lending a quiet form of support. "Jethro, you can't…it shouldn't matter that J.J. reminds you of them. It's a _good_ thing, Jethro, they're living on in him, and in you. And it's okay for you to show a little…weakness, for lack of a better term, every once in a while. We _are_ here to help, your team, Ducky, Abby, and me."

He managed a half smile, bringing the hand on his neck back down into his lap, looking up at her. "I… I—I never thought of it that way, really." He swallowed again, dropping his gaze back to his lap. "I thought I'd be okay, I've always done alright watching J.J. for Sarah when she was off on business, but I just, I didn't realize how…different this was. He didn't sleep, really sleep, at all that first week, just sat up screaming every hour with the same nightmare, wouldn't even let me out of the room. He stayed awake for a day and a half after the funeral, wouldn't let either of us leave the basement. I mean, now he's sleeping, and he can handle being away from me for longer than half an hour, but…I just, I don't know if I'm cut out for this, Jen."

"Don't say that. You're one of the best people I've ever seen around children, especially on cases here. You can't say you're not up for this. That boy, down there with your team, he's…at the least, he's your nephew, but you know he's more than that, Jethro. He looks up to you as his father, biological or no. You're the _only_ person he's had for a father figure. You were there for his mother when he was born, you fought off a whole Czechian crime syndicate to make sure he stayed with his mother, and now that she's gone, you're the one Sarah chose to take care of him. _She_ believed you could do it, she wouldn't have gotten that will written with those stipulations otherwise, Jethro."

Gibbs looked up after a long moment, blinking rapidly. "I…thanks. I—I needed that, I should have said something earlier, thank you, Jen."

"So, you're alright, then?" Jenny's voice was skeptical, her head tilted inquiringly.

Jethro gave her a crooked grin, shrugging one shoulder. "Yeah, I'm better, and I'm not going to be stupid again and assume that I have to go this alone." He tilted his head, apparently figuring something out. "Hey…wait, you visiting all the time these past few weeks…that was you checking up on me."

She nodded, her mouth twisting into a wry grin. "Guilty."

He stared at her for a moment, finally letting out a short laugh. "Well, I guess I should have seen that one."

* * *

Abby sat on the top if Gibbs' desk, her platform clad feet swinging below her. "So, J.J., how's life living with the silver-haired fox?"

J.J., who sat in Jethro's desk chair, tilted his head confusedly. "Huh?"

"You know, Gibbs! I call him the silver-haired fox 'cause he's…well, he's just Gibbs, and that's the way to describe him, and well, he's just, the silver-haired fox." Abby rambled happily as she continued swinging her feet.

"It's okay. We have fun, play games, and he reads me stories sometimes to help me sleep at night, like Mum used to." J.J. shrugged. "It's kinda like when he visits, just, for a long time, 'stead of a few days."

Ducky pulled the extra office chair around and took a seat in front of Jethro's desk, smiling kindly at the little boy. "And you are sleeping better now, right?"

J.J. inclined his head in a vague nod. "Yeah, I'm sleepin' alright." He gave a crooked grin, faintly reminiscent of Jethro's, his blue eyes brightening. "An' Jet made me this cool bed, it's kinda like a pirate ship, we finished it last weekend."

Ducky smiled wider, leaning forward on his knees. "Oh, so you've got your own bed now, that's wonderful, Jacob." He noticed J.J.'s slight grimace. "I'm sorry, my dear boy, did I say something to offend you?"

"No, I jus' don't like bein' called Jacob, the only person who did that was Mum's boss, Mister Holden. I don' like him much." J.J. shrugged. "If you don' wanna call me J.J., you can call me Jay, or Jake, that's what Unca Jack calls me sometimes."

"Jake, right." Ducky nodded, giving him a gentle smile. "So, Jake, you said your uncle Jethro has been reading you stories?"

"He's not my uncle."

"I…he isn't? Then, what is he?" Ducky looked slightly confused, mirroring the expressions of the team.

J.J. shrugged. "Mum always said he was my dad, tol' me that he couldn't live with us 'cause of work, but that he loved me very much. He never liked me callin' him Dad, so I started callin' him Jet."

"But…you know he's technically your uncle, right?" Tony had pulled his desk chair up, sitting in it backwards, his arms folded across the backrest.

J.J. sighed, turning to Abby. "Can you look somethin' up on the 'puter for me?"

"Yeah, of course, little man. Whatcha need?" Abby hopped off her perch, moving over to kneel in front of Gibbs' computer.

"Find that paper thing they give ya in the hos…hospital when a baby's born, for me." J.J. sat back in the chair, his arms folded across his chest.

Abby entered a search into the computer, scanning through the files until she came up with the correct one. "Here we are: Jacob Christopher Jethro Collins, born January 24, 2000, to…Leroy J. M. Gibbs and Sarah Kelly Collins."

J.J. sighed, shaking his head. "No, no, that's the new one. There sposta be an old one, look again."

Abby gave him an odd look, but did as requested, searching again. "Alright…here we go…Jacob Jethro Collins, born January 24, 2000, to…Bartholomew James Fischer and Sarah Kelly Collins."

J.J. nodded. "That's it. That guy, Fischer, he's my…well, blood dad, but I've never met him. I think I saw him, once, he got in a fight with Jet. That was the time we had to take Jet to the hospital, his arm got cut real bad. Then Jet started learnin' Czech, and teachin' Mum and me, and then suddenly that Fischer guy wasn't my dad anymore. We went to this guy in a big flowy black robe, in the courthouse, and he wrote out a new paper thing for me, sayin' Jet was my dad, 'stead of the Fisher guy. 'An Jet had my name changed a little bit, named me Chris after a good friend of his that died, jus' like Unca Jack named him after a friend that died."

Tony blinked, swiveling his chair side to side. "What's the M stand for?"

"What M?"

"The one in Gibbs' name, J.J." Tony leaned forward, grinning.

"Oh. Um…Matthew, maybe? I never really asked." J.J. shrugged. "Why?"

"We never knew he had a second middle name, just curious."

"Oh. I think it's a family thing, with Gibbs, anyways. Unca Jack's great-great granddad started it."J.J. shrugged again, his interest turning to the desk drawers in front of him. He rooted about for a moment, coming up with a photo album. He frowned interestedly, setting it on the desk and beginning to flip through it. Ducky moved around the desk to stand behind the boy, looking at the pictures with him.

"Ah, is that your mother, Jake?" Ducky's hand reached down, his index finger tapping on the younger redhead who sat smiling at the camera, her arm draped around Kelly Gibbs, who grinned toothily out of the picture.

J.J.'s mouth quirked in a half smile, his eyes flickering with an emotion that was quickly hidden. "Yeah, that's Mum. She was…the prettiest lady in the world. Well…'cept for Jenny." He grinned bashfully and ducked his head. "Mum was…great. She knew exactly how to make me laugh if I was sad, and she told the best bedtime stories."

"She sounds like a wonderful person, J.J." Ziva turned her chair to face the boy, propping her feet up against the filing cabinet.

J.J. smiled briefly. "Thanks, Zee." He returned his gaze to the photos, flipping through until he found one that made him smile. Ducky leaned a little farther over the back of the chair, smiling when he saw the picture. "I didn't know Jethro played soccer." The picture showed a laughing Gibbs balancing a soccer ball on his foot, his arm thrown out to protect it from Sarah, who stood poised to tackle him.

J.J. grinned. "He taught me how to play. I'm gonna be on a team this fall, Jet signed me up at the Y."

He continued flipping through the album, stopping at the last picture in the book with a soft sigh. Jethro sat, leaning against the front steps of a house, a small half grin pulling at the corner of his mouth. J.J.'s head showed just over his left shoulder, a wide grin crossing the boy's face. "Mum took this a few weeks before she…left. Jet came to visit for the weekend, said he needed a few days to clear his head. He was real upset about losin' a good friend…I think her name was Kate. That was the only time he smiled the whole weekend, Mum made him laugh with some old joke."

"No, she didn't, you tried to tickle me." J.J.'s head snapped up as Gibbs' voice rang out from across the bullpen as he walked in behind Jenny.

"Did no-ot." A smirk faintly reminiscent of Gibbs' tugged at the corner of the boy's mouth as he argued with his godfather.

"Yeah, you did! You're the only person I know who's figured out that I'm –aaah….stoppit, Jen, that tickles!" Jenny had rolled her eyes, reaching over to dig her nails into Jethro's right side, just below his ribs, effectively stopping his sentence. Gibbs shied away from her fingers, unsuccessfully trying to stop a bout of laughter.

"Looks like Jenny knows you're ticklish too, Jet." J.J. grinned mischievously, hopping off of the desk chair and approaching Gibbs, giving Jenny a high-five.

Gibbs dodged another attempt at tickling, giving Jenny a glare. "I am not ticklish, J."

Jenny let out a half hidden snort of laughter. "Oh, please, Jethro, we all know you're ticklish." She stopped, clearing her throat awkwardly as the team and Abby stared unabashedly. "Or, erm…maybe just me. But, that's irrelevant."

The team all exchanged glances, a slight smirk tugging at the corner of Abby's lips. "How exactly did you know Gibbs was ticklish, Director?"

"I—um…I hit him in the ribs once, when we were sparring, and he…he uh, he started laughing." Jenny's face reddened as she mumbled her answer. "It's not what you think. Seriously."

J.J. grinned, glancing over at Tony as he began singing. "_I can see what's happening…_"

"What?" Tony tilted his head to the side, looking confused.

"_And they don't have a clue…_" J.J.'s grin grew wider as he gestured to Gibbs and Jenny.

"Who?"

"_They'll fall in lov—." _The rest of his song was cut off as Gibbs swooped down, clapping a hand over his mouth and picking him up.

"Alright, J, that's enough out of you. No more singing Lion King, please, it's bad enough having you walk around the house yelling Hakuna-whatever-it-is at the top of your lungs."

"The _Lion King_! Can You Feel the Love Tonight, by…Ernie Sabella and Joseph Weaver, voices of Timon and Pumbaa. I _knew_ I'd heard that somewhere before!...Wait, why were you singing that to…Oh. OH." Tony grinned, giving thumbs up to J.J., who wriggled furiously in Gibbs' grip. "Nice connection, little man! We'll make an investigator outta you yet, kid."

Gibbs leveled a glare at Tony. "I blame you for his sudden interest in movies. He was just a normal kid with a relatively healthy respect for TV. Then, he meets you, and all of a sudden, it's movie one-liners all over the place. Sheesh."

J.J. had managed to wrestle himself out of Jethro's hold, straightening his t-shirt with a grumble. "S'not my fault you never bought a TV 'fore now, Jet. Mum kept sayin' you should. I mean, c'mon, even Unca Jack had one 'fore you did."

Gibbs let out a muffled groan, walking back over to his desk, narrowing his eyes at the computer screen. "J…what's this doing on here?"

J.J. had the good grace to look slightly embarrassed, ducking his head. "I…um…well, it was the only way I could think of to 'splain how you're kinda my dad, but kinda aren't."

Jethro let out a long sigh, shaking his head. "Well…can't say you shouldn't have done it, it's your birth certificate. Just, ah, next time, let's leave it at saying that I'm your dad, okay?"

J.J. shrugged. "Okay." He glanced around, his gaze stopping on an empty pizza box in Tony's trashcan. "Can we still have everyone over for dinner?"

Gibbs shrugged one shoulder slightly. "Eh, I suppose that's alright."He glanced around the bullpen, leaning against his desk. "You all wanna come over for dinner?"

"Well, boss, that depends. Are you cooking? 'Cause last time I was over at your place, there wasn't anything edible there, just a few bottles of bour—ouch. Shutting up now, boss." Tony's rambling was cut off as Gibbs nodded to Jenny, who leaned over and slapped the back of his head.

"I for one would be delighted to join you two for dinner this evening, Jethro. Is there anything I should bring?" Ducky spoke up from his position near McGee's desk.

"Nah. I've got it covered." Gibbs shrugged off the offers from the team as they each accepted the invitations. "Just bring yourselves, and whatever alcohol you prefer, if it's not bourbon or beer."

"Sounds good, Jethro." Ducky was already turned to head back to Autopsy, pausing for a moment as a thought struck him. "Ah, Jethro? I can't help but think that Mr. Palmer might feel a bit left out. Would it be alright if he tagged along?"

"Yeah, sure, the more the merrier or something like that." Gibbs gave a wry grin, nodding to Ducky. "Go ahead and invite him."

* * *

Jenny tilted her head as she approached Jethro's home for the second time that day, hearing the faint strains of music issuing out of it. She walked to the front door, trying the knob and finding it unlocked, shaking her head. The music grew louder as she moved through the front hallway to put her bag in the kitchen, tilting her head towards the basement door, where a hoarse voice could be heard singing, somewhat off key.

_I say my hell is the closet I'm stuck inside…Can't see the light_

_And my heaven is a nice house in the sky, got central heating, and I'm alright…_

"I didn't know you listened to Dave Matthews Band, Jethro." Jenny's amused comment cut across his slightly flat singing. Gibbs whirled around, staring up to the top of the basement stairs.

"It's Sarah's music, off of her pod-thing. You know, that thing Zach had? I've kind of gotten used to having music playing down here." He shrugged, picking the sander back up and sweeping it across the boat in even strokes, while he reached over with his free hand to turn the music down.

Jenny walked down the stairs carefully, looking around the basement for the boy who seemed to be permanently attached to Jethro's side. "Where's J?"

"Asleep." Gibbs nodded his head towards a small TV monitor sitting within his sight-line. "I told him if he wanted to stay up late tonight with you guys, he needed to get some sleep now. He'll wake up in a bit; he's got some sort of sixth sense when it comes to all of you."

Jenny looked over at the TV for a moment, seeing J.J. sound asleep in his bed. She smiled, walking over to the boat next to Gibbs. "He's doing better, about being separated from you. Two weeks ago, you couldn't even get him to sleep in his own bed."

Gibbs smiled slightly and nodded, walking over to the workbench to empty two of the mason jars, pouring a measure of bourbon in each, holding one out for Jenny. "Yeah. Only problem is, I've never been much of a storyteller, so, I've had to sing him to sleep, which is…interesting."

Jenny smirked slightly, taking a drink of the bourbon before she walked over to the boat, circling it carefully. "You want some help?"

He tilted his head in a nod, walking over to hand her a sander as he wet his fingertip, brushing it against the boat. "With the grain, Jen."

She laughed softly, rolling her eyes at him as she settled into a calming rhythm, sanding the boat methodically next to him. They worked in silence for a while, each of them content to work with their own thoughts.

------------

Jenny jumped slightly, startled, as Jethro's hand slid over top of hers, stopping her sanding. He smiled at her, taking the tool from her hands and replacing it with a planer, walking her over to one of the less finished beams on the opposite end of the boat. "Here, look. You see that section there? It's a little rough still, we need to plane a few strips of wood off."

He stood behind her, his larger hands covering her small ones on the tool, setting it carefully against the beam. Jenny leaned back into his embrace with a small smile, following the directions he murmured in her ear. They worked comfortably together for a few more minutes, before a quiet cough from the top of the stairs sent them scrambling apart. J.J. stood at the top of the stairs, distinctly amused as he stared at a mortified looking Jenny and an embarrassed Gibbs.

"Heya, Jenny. Whatcha guys doin'?" J.J. padded down the stairs as he spoke, running a hand through his sleep mussed hair in an attempt to get it to lie flat.

"We were…ah, just working on the boat." Jethro didn't quite meet J.J.'s eyes as he mumbled an excuse, turning to head back over to the workbench.

"Why were ya hugging Jenny then?" J.J. scowled as his hair flopped back to the sleep mussed look, running his fingers through it.

"I—um, we…I mean…that wasn't a hug, Jay, Jet was just helping me." Jenny walked over to grab her mason jar of bourbon, taking a long sip.

"Hm." J.J. seemed unconvinced, but shrugged it off, moving over to hoist himself up on the workbench between Jet and Jenny. "What's for dinner?"

Jethro smirked. "Eh…we already ate, you slept through it."

"Huh?" J.J. leaned over, grabbing Jenny's wrist to glare at her watch, then his godfather. "Liar! It's not even 1800!"

Gibbs laughed, reaching over to ruffle J.J.'s hair. "Okay…kidding, sorry. Whatever you want for dinner, as long as it's reasonably quick, everyone will be over here by 1930."

J.J. frowned, contemplating. "Can't we just order take-out? I don't wanna have anything we've got here."

"Hm. That's fine. Less work for me." Jethro smirked, taking a long drink of his bourbon. "C'mon. Enough of being down here, you were down here all last night. Let's go find something to do." He turned and lifted the boy down from the workbench, starting for the stairs.

"Jet? Can you teach me how to fight again?" J.J. followed Jenny and Jet up the stairs obediently, leaning against the doorframe at the top as he stared at his godfather.

Gibbs frowned slightly. "J…I only taught you that when your…when that guy kept hanging around and harassing your mum, I wasn't intending to teach you to fight, just how to get away."

"But I hafta know how to fight, Jet. All your other people do!" J.J. scowled briefly, folding his arms across his chest.

"No, J, I'm at least three times your size, bub, I'd kill you." He shook his head, glancing over at Jenny for help.

"J, Jet's right, buddy, there's no way he can teach you to fight now, you'd get hurt. Besides, you've got all of us on the team to help you out if you get into a tight spot." Jenny crouched in front of the boy, placing her hand on his shoulder. She hid a smile at his forlorn look. "Tell you what, J. When you're tall enough to where you reach Jet's ribs, we'll have you come to NCIS with us, and we'll all give you a special lesson to show you how to fight, okay?"

J.J. finally gave a grudging nod, pushing off of the doorframe and heading into the living room. "What are we gonna do 'til everyone gets here, then?"

Gibbs shrugged, glancing around until a soccer ball sitting near the back door caught his eye. "C'mon, we'll go practice your soccer. Think you can actually score on me this time?"

"You're on, Gunny." J.J. grabbed Jenny's hand, pulling her towards the back door. "C'mon, Jenny, you can be on my team!"

* * *

"Boss? Director? J.J.?" Tony poked his head out the back door of the house, looking around for them. A shriek from the back corner of the yard gave away their location.

"Jethro! Agh! Put me down!" Jenny struggled in Jethro's arms, as he had wrapped her in a bear hug, lifting her off the ground as he skillfully kicked the soccer ball ahead of him, heading for the goalposts J.J. defended. "J! Help!"

J.J. charged his godfather with a yell, tackling him just above the knees, sending all three tumbling to the ground in a heap. Tony chuckled as he made his way out into the yard, standing over the sprawled heap that was Gibbs, Jenny, and J.J. "Well, looks like you three are having fun. Ah…what exactly_ are_ you doing?" He grinned cheekily, raising his eyebrow at Gibbs' arms, which were still tightly wrapped around Jenny's waist, holding her against his chest.

"Soccer." Gibbs carefully disentangled himself from the pile, vaulting to his feet, leveling a glare at his senior agent.

"Ah, right, boss, soccer. That's totally what it looked like. Shutting up now." Tony cringed, taking the requisite head slap. He leaned over to help J.J. up as Gibbs pulled Jenny back to her feet. "What's for dinner, boss?"

"Take out. J.J. didn't feel like having anything we've got here." Jethro shrugged as he turned, heading back towards the house.

They took seats in the living room, relaxing back to wait for the rest of the team. Ducky arrived first, greeting all of them with a smile, allowing Gibbs to take his hat and jacket. Abby arrived next, clomping about the house in her platforms as she rambled happily, talking to J.J. excitedly. Ziva pulled up with much squealing of tires, with McGee and Palmer following a few moments later.

---------------

"Alright! Everyone shut up for a minute, I can't hear myself think!" Gibbs stood in the doorway to his kitchen, raising his voice over the chatter that permeated the room. "Now. Where are we ordering from?"

"I want Chinese!" J.J. tugged on the side of his jeans, staring up at the menus Jet held in his hand.

"We had Chinese yesterday, J."

"So?"

"So you can't have the same thing two days in a row, bud."

"Why?"

"'Cause you can't!" He leveled a glare down at J.J., who scowled and folded his arms across his small chest stubbornly. Jenny's mouth quirked into a small smile as she watched their antics.

"Why?"

"Because I said so, Jake." His voice was fast approaching the dangerous tone that showed most when someone had angered him. Jenny tried to catch his eye, attempting to get Gibbs to calm down.

"That's not a reason." J.J. mirrored Gibbs' scowl, poking him sharply in the leg to emphasize his point.

"Says who?"

"Mum."

"Well, Jake, your—" Gibbs cut himself off, letting out a muffled curse, though the look on the boy's face showed he knew exactly what Jethro hadn't said.

"Yeah, I know, Mum's not here." J.J. mumbled the last part as he let go of Jet's pant leg, disappearing into the kitchen. "Just, get whatever. I don't care. 'M not hungry no more."

"Dammit." Gibbs tossed the menus into the living room, muttering something about 'pick yourselves' before he turned to go into the kitchen. Jenny's hand on his arm stayed him.

"Let me talk to him." She watched as the muscles in his jaw worked, almost able to visualize the gears turning in his head as he struggled with the decision, finally conceding with a nod.

"Fine. I'll…I'll take care of dinner orders, then."

Jenny nodded, walking into the kitchen, searching for J.J. She found him sitting with his arms tucked around his knees, his back resting against the island, hiding him from view. She sighed, leaning down to sit next to him, tucking her feet under her legs Indian-style.

"Hey, bud, you okay?"

J.J. gave a quiet sniffle, staring at his knees pointedly. "I didn't mean to make Jet mad, I jus' really wanted Chinese." He glanced over at her, blinking a few times. "It's Mum's fav'rite."

Jenny smiled at him, shifting to wrap an arm around his small shoulders. "J, your…well, listen. Jet isn't angry with you. He just…he doesn't like it when people argue with him. And he didn't mean what he said. I know you miss your mother, Jake, but, well, Jet misses her too. Arguing with him over a dinner order's not going to get you anywhere, and I'm pretty sure you know that."

J.J. frowned slightly and conceded her point with a small nod, shifting to rest his head against her shoulder. "I—I know, I jus'…I wanted…if we keep doin' stuff Mum liked, then it's like she's not really gone, is she?"

Jenny sighed, hugging him just the slightest bit closer. "J…you want to know a secret?" She met his clear blue gaze as he looked up, nodding slowly. "My mom…she, passed away, when I was around 10. For a while, I used to get in trouble all the time with my dad, arguing with him because he wouldn't do things the way Mom used to. I thought just about the same thing you did, that if we kept doing things Mom's way, and if we kept doing the things she liked, that she wasn't really gone, then. But one day, Dad, he sat down with me, and told me this one thing: The people who really love you, like your mom, they never, ever leave you. There's always going to be those things your mum liked, and you know that. But, you can't…you and Jet need to have your own special things. Just because you don't eat Chinese food every night doesn't mean your mom's gone away for good. She'll always be there, as a part of you." Her thin finger tapped on his nose as she offered him another smile.

"But she's not here." J.J. frowned in protest, his eyes confused.

"Ah, but she _is_." Jenny took his small hand, splaying out the slightly crooked fingers of the boy's hand over her own palm. "Remember how Jet always says you have her hands?" J.J. nodded slowly, and Jenny went on, pointing a finger at his face. "You've got her nose, too, and her eyes." His face creased in a bashful smile, the bridge of his nose crinkling slightly. "And there, you do that nose crinkle thing she did, Jet's got a picture of the two of you, she's doing the same thing."

"But you guys always say I'm like Jet."

"You are, in a way, you act like him, and you seem to have picked up on quite a few of his looks, but, you're still your mother's child, J.J., and that's how she lives on." Jenny smiled at him again, noting his own smile in reply. "You like The Lion King, right?"

"Yeah, it's my fav'rite." J.J. grinned.

"Remember the Circle of Life, and all that stuff Mufasa told Simba? About how all of their ancestors, all the ones they loved that passed away, all those long dead guys up in the stars? They're always there, just like your mum is always there for you." Jenny rubbed his shoulder soothingly.

J.J. blinked and nodded, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I…I get it now. I guess…I never thinked of it like that, I 'spose." He offered her a sheepish grin, lolling his head back against her shoulder again, his arms unwrapping from his knees and surrounding her waist in a short hug instead. "Thanks, Jenny."

She merely laughed in response, settling her chin on the top of his head briefly. "Not a problem, J. I know it doesn't sound like much, but, if you ever need a friend to talk to, about, you know, stuff about your mom, I'm here, okay?" She felt him nod against her chin, his arms tightening their hug for a moment, before he pulled away.

"I'm gonna…go back 'an say sorry to Jet."

Jethro cleared his throat, walking into the kitchen holding a take-out menu in his hand. "You don't need to, J." He knelt carefully, staring at J.J. calmly. "And you don't ever need to say sorry to me, buddy. I was out of line. If you want Chinese, we'll get Chinese, ok?" J.J. gave him a crooked grin, stepping forward to wrap his arms around Jethro's neck in a hug. Jenny smiled, raising her shoulder in a shrug to Jethro's questioning look, mouthing _'It's between him and me'_ in answer.

* * *

**_A/n: And, so, there you go, Chapter 3! ...I hate odd numbers. _**

**_but, anyways, I digress. apologies for the long wait, I had a little more trouble with this chapter than I thought. It's also considerably longer than I thought it would be, but, beggars can't be choosers, so..._**

**_As you can probably see, I also started another story this week, Speculations on Melted Wax, mostly because I was up at oh-dark-thirty with a box of crayons. Thus, my updates will be a little more spaced out as we move on, I'm working on both stories at the same time. _**

**_Apologies, again, I know I said I'd have the new chapter up earlier than this. _**

**_Reviews make me very happy, and help with the writer's block. :)_**

**_-meg_**


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/n: Hey there, you guys (and girls). Here's Chapter 4 (finally)! **_

_**Things of note:**_

_**a) This occurs about a…month or so after Chapter 3. Thematically, this is after Season 3 Ep. 7 Honor Code, but before Season 3 Ep. 18 Bait.**_

_**b) J.J. is in school, spends his afternoons at NCIS. He is now officially J.J. Gibbs, the adoption papers from Social Services have gone through, etc., etc.**_

_**c) Gibbs is back at work.**_

_**d) Jenny and Gibbs are still not together, as of yet, but Jenny is spending a lot more time with Gibbs and J.J.**_

…_**I believe that's it.**_

_**Read, and enjoy!**_

_**-meg

* * *

**_

Fist Fights and Bedtime Stories

NCIS Director Jennifer Shepard was hopelessly, and horribly bored. The same routine, day in and day out, had gotten dreadfully monotonous. Case reports, MTAC feeds, meetings with seemingly endless lines of politicians, more case reports, kissing ass to smooth things over for Jethro's team, and even _more_ case reports. She wanted to either cry, or slam her head into her desk, repeatedly. Or, maybe, both. Yes. That was it. Crying _while_ slamming her head against the desk. That would make her feel better.

She let out a muffled groan, her head falling to the desk of its own accord. Ouch. Maybe not so much. Slamming her head against the desk hurt.

"Director Shepard?" Cynthia's voice through the intercom on her desk prompted Jenny to sit back up, wincing as she rubbed her forehead. "Yes, Cynthia?"

"Agent Gibbs on line one for you." Jenny frowned at this, giving her phone an incredulous look. Why would Jethro be calling her on her private line? They both had cell phones. She let out a sigh, reaching to pick up the phone, her slim fingers pressing the button for line one.

"Hello?"

"_Jen? It's me."_

"I gathered as much, Jethro. Ah…why are you calling my private line, and not my cell?"

"_I…that's not relevant right now. I…I need a, um…I need a favor."_

"Okay, what do you need? Wait…you didn't piss the FBI off again, did you?"

"_Ha, ha, funny, Jen. No, I didn't do anything to your precious sister agencies. I, ah…I need someone to go pick J.J. up from school. I can't, I'm halfway out to the boonies after a lead, and you…I, um…I mean, I, uh, I listed you as J.J.'s other emergency contact." _

Jenny's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You did? And, ah, when exactly were you planning on telling me this?"

A heavy sigh was heard on the other end of the line. _"I…I would've told you…eventually. But, seriously, Jen, I really need you to go pick him up. The principal called me. Said he got in a fight or something. Please."_

"Alright, then, I'll go pick him up now. Where do you want me to take him?"

"_Could you…could you just bring him back to work? I should be back in a couple of hours. I…I hate to stick him there all afternoon, but…there's not much else I can do."_

"Alright, then, I'll do that. I'll make sure to get all the relevant information from the principal about what happened, too."

"_Ah, thanks, Jen. You're….I owe you one. I gotta go, though, we're almost there." _

Jenny laughed quietly, murmuring a goodbye as he hung up the phone. Well, now she'd gotten her wish. Her afternoon was no longer boring.

* * *

"Er, hello, I'm Jenny Shepard. I'm here to pick up Jake Gibbs? His, ah, father called, said Jake got in a little trouble at school?" Jenny smiled kindly at the secretary sitting in the school's front office.

"Oh, yes, you'll need to meet with Principal Ford first, ma'am." The secretary stood, waving her on into a well lit office, where an older man sat behind a mahogany desk. "Principal Ford, Jake Gibbs' mother is here to see you, sir."

Jenny winced, waiting until the secretary exited the office as she took a seat in front of the desk. "I'm ah…I'm not Jake's mother, Mr. Ford, just so you know."

He let out a low chuckle, standing to lean over his desk to offer a hand to shake. "James Ford, Miss Shepard. And, I gathered as much, from reading young Jake's personal file here, which it is clear my secretary has not."

"Jenny, please, Mr. Ford. You, ah, you understand about Jake's situation, then?" Jenny clasped his hand warmly, offering him a smile.

"Call me James, then, Jenny. Yes, Mr. Gibbs explained his situation to me when he enrolled Jake here. Jake…has never met his biological father, if I remember correctly?"

"I, no, not to my knowledge. Er, I'm sorry, James, but I don't exactly understand what this has to do with whatever happened to Jake today. Is he in some sort of trouble?"

"Well, no, not…not exactly. Jacob was involved in a little fight earlier, out on the playground." Mr. Ford let out a sigh, glancing down at a paper on his desk. "It seems he saw some of the elder children teasing and taunting a young girl in his grade about not having any parents. Jacob didn't take kindly to the insults and tried to get the other children to leave her alone. One of the ringleaders of the group, started taunting Jacob instead, and that's when the first punches were thrown. Jake is in with the nurse, but he's refusing to let her treat his injuries."

Jenny blinked, surprised. "Is he…alright? Gibbs never mentioned anything about injuries. Who is this….other boy? Is he being talked to? Surely you can't blame this whole thing on Jake, he was only trying to help!"

"Jake got in a fight with a second grader named Hugo Fisher. Young Mr. Fisher has a reputation as a troublemaker here, he's been suspended twice. I don't know what happened to Jake, other than that the nurse is insisting he seek some medical attention. I'm not going to put anything on Jake's record, because young Hugo has a record here already as a troublemaker, and there's a whole playground full of witnesses saying that Hugo provoked Jake into throwing the first punch. It's merely policy here to send students home after an altercation like this." He glanced up at Jenny, attempting to placate her. "We're having a talk with Hugo's parents, also. Hopefully, this time will be enough to get him suspended for good."

"Oh?" Jenny raised an eyebrow. "You've been trying to get this…boy out of your school?"

"His father is…a man with many friends high up, particularly on the school board. So far, my efforts to get Hugo out of my school have been stonewalled by the board members. This time, I think I've got the evidence enough to overrule them and go straight to the superintendent." Mr. Ford frowned, pulling a rather thick looking file out of his desk drawer. "A file here, of young Mr. Fisher's exploits at my school, since he arrived here in kindergarten. Fifteen separate complaints and I can't send this boy away from my school because his father's got half the bloody school board in his pocket."

Jenny raised her eyebrows. "Mr. Ford—sorry, James. Do you know what I do?"

"If you're asking if I know if you're Director of NCIS, yes, I do."

"Well, I also happen to know the superintendent quite well, and I view Jake as a son. I don't take kindly to my people getting hurt. Let me talk to the super, and we'll see about getting Hugo and Mr. Fisher out of the school, hm?" Jenny gave him an conspiratorial smile, leaning forward in her chair slightly to write a number down on a sheet of paper sitting on his desk. "Now that we've cleared that up, can I take Jake home now?"

* * *

J.J. sat uncomfortably in the nurse's office, tapping his foot incessantly on the floor. He hugged his right arm close to his body, glancing up nervously at the nurse every few seconds, as if expecting her to suddenly pin him down so she could tend to his injuries.

He sniffed, scrubbing at his nose with his left hand, hating the antiseptic smell permeating the room. "Ow." He had forgotten it hurt to touch his nose.

The nurse looked up, letting out a sigh. "Jake, I really wish you would let me look you over, son."

"Nuh uh. Don' need you to. Where's Jet?" He sniffed again, glancing at the door.

"Is Jet your father?" The nurse glanced down at her file. "We managed to get him on the phone, but he said he was sending someone else, a…Jenny, to pick you up."

J.J. ignored her question, staring silently at the door to wait for Jenny to come through, ready to go home. His face creased in a smile as Jenny walked in. "Jenny!" The smile shrank and his gaze dropped to the floor as Principal Ford walked in after Jenny. "Principal Ford, sir."

Jenny laughed softly, crouching down carefully in front of J.J. "J, you're not in trouble, buddy, Principal Ford just wanted to make sure you're doing okay."

"I hear you stood up to the school bully for a young lady, Jake." Principal Ford took the seat next to J.J., offering him a smile.

"Yes, sir. Am…am I in trouble?" J.J. finally looked up, hesitant.

"Nope. You're not in trouble at all."

"Then…can I go home now, sir?" J.J. stared at him, trying at politeness.

"Yes, you can, young man. Has Nurse Kirk looked you over?"

"No sir, I'm alright." J.J. quickly hopped up, carefully leaning down to grab his book bag in his left hand, keeping the right tucked into his body.

Principal Ford merely glanced at Jenny with a slightly raised eyebrow, shrugging slightly. "As you wish. I'll see you soon, Jake."

Jenny placed an hand on J.J.'s shoulder, walking out of the office with him. J.J. seemed extremely reluctant to meet her eyes, keeping his gaze focused on the ground. "Sorry I got in a fight, Jenny."

"Hm?"

"Said I'm sorry I got in this fight. Made you leave work to come get me." He looked up long enough to hand his backpack off to Stanley, carefully clambering into the backseat of the Town Car, scooting to sit against the window.

"Jake, I'm not angry with you, and you don't need to apologize. I'm not saying it's okay that you got in the fight, but, you got in the fight for the right reasons. Next time, you really ought to go find a teacher if you see someone getting teased like that. But, you went in there trying to help your friend out, and that's the right thing to do." Jenny sat next to him, reaching over to ruffle his hair slightly.

He sniffed, reaching up with his good hand to rub his nose again, wincing after the fact. "Ow."

"Are you alright?" Jenny leaned over, taking his chin in her hand, turning his face towards hers. "Ooh, Jake, we really need to get you looked at. Why wouldn't you let the nurse do it?"

"Don' like nurses, or hospitals. Can't Ducky just look at it? Or you? My mum always used to fix all my hurts."

Jenny let out a sigh, shaking her head with a soft laugh. "You're turning out just like Jet, bud. I'll call Ducky up to my office to check you over when we get back to NCIS, alright? But next time, if you get hurt at school, you let the nurse look you over, okay?"

J.J. let out a quiet grumble, nodding. The car was silent for a few moments, before he glanced over at her, voicing a question. "Jenny?"

"Yeah, Jake? What's up?"

J.J. fidgeted uncomfortably, fiddling with the zipper of his backpack, which sat on the seat in-between them. "I'm sposta write a story, for class, 'bout my mum. I…I dunno what to do. D'you…d'you think…I mean, would you or Zee mind if I wrote about you guys instead?"

Jenny blinked, surprised. J.J. looked a little worried at the expression on her face, hurriedly backtracking. "I—I mean, if not, that's cool, I'll just…I'll fin' somethin' else to write about."

"No, Jake, that's…that's fine. I don't mind at all. I just…I thought you'd rather write about your mother."

"I…it's kinda hard, rememberin' stuff about mum. Makes me sad. I like you 'an Zee, you guys make me feel happy, so I…I mean, that's why I wanna write 'bout you." J.J. kept his gaze focused on his lap, mumbling quietly.

"Of course you can, buddy." Jenny blinked rapidly for a minute, shifting over to slip her arm around his shoulders in a hug.

J.J. looked up with a small smile, turning to wrap his good arm around her middle, resting his head on her shoulder. "Thanks."

They both looked up as Stanley opened the door of the car. "We're here, Director."

Jenny smiled, helping J.J. out of the car and taking her purse and his backpack from her security detail. "Thank you, Stanley."

J.J. was already ambling away, headed for the elevator. He frowned as he noticed the retinal scanner, shifting up on his tiptoes to look at it. "Where's the button?"

Jenny laughed softly, slinging his backpack over her free shoulder as she walked up behind him, leaning down to allow the machine to scan her eye. "That is the button, Jake."

J.J. looked appropriately awestruck, giving it another glance as he followed Jenny into the elevator. "That's like the scanner in the Bat Cave! Cool." He grinned at Jenny, his hand darting out to hit the button for the bullpen.

Jenny shook her head, reaching out to press the button for Autopsy instead. "No, we're going to see Ducky, so he can look you over first."

J.J. let out a slow sigh, looking slightly put out. "I kinda hoped you'd forgot."

Jenny chuckled softly, ruffling his hair teasingly as the elevator doors opened. "Nice try, bud. Wait up here a sec, let me make sure Ducky doesn't have any visitors." After determining that there were no dead bodies laying on the tables, she nodded to J.J., walking in the room.

"Whoa. This place is cool." J.J.'s eyes lit up as the doors slid open with their customary 'whoosh', staring around at the sterile room.

Jenny rolled her eyes, setting her purse and his pack down on an empty table, looking around for Ducky. Palmer appeared out of the store-room, blinking in surprise. "Dir—Director Shepard, ma'am. Are you, uh…you looking for Doctor Mallard?"

"Well, yes, but, you could help us out too. Jake got in a fight at school, I need someone to look him over." Jenny smiled at the assistant M.E., waving J.J. over to clamber up on a table. "Where is Ducky?"

"Er…I believe he stepped out for a late lunch, ma'am." Palmer smiled nervously, grabbing Ducky's black bag from the desk and walking over to the table J.J. sat on. "So, Jake, d'you mind letting me look you over?"

"Yeah, I 'spose that's okay." J.J. waited calmly as Palmer moved around the room, grabbing a few miscellaneous things and pulling a chair over for Jenny. "Here, Director, er…take a seat."

"Thank you, Jimmy." Jenny rolled the chair around to sit out of the way, but still well within J.J.'s eyeline. Palmer slipped on a pair of gloves, moving to stand in front of J.J. "So. You got in a fight at school?"

"Yeah. Hugo was bein' mean to Katie." J.J. shifted in place, allowing Palmer to help get his jacket and t-shirt off. He winced sharply and tucked his right hand into his side again, missing the worried look Jenny exchanged with Palmer.

"Hey, Jake, can I see your hand?" Palmer gently took the boy's hand, turning it over carefully. "I think you might have broken a finger or two."

J.J. managed a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, I punched Hugo first, hit his face weird, and then my hand started hurtin', so I punched with my other hand 'stead."

Palmer chuckled, turning J.J.'s hand back over. "Well, I'll need to splint that probably, but let's take an x-ray first to be sure." He crouched down to J.J.'s level, looking over his face. "Does your nose hurt?"

"Only when I rub at it, kinda."

"Hm. Well, you've got a pretty nasty looking cut across it, and I think you might've broken it."

J.J. laid back on the table with a long sigh, gripping the edge tightly with his good hand. "Go 'head 'an fix it, then."

"What?"

"I've broke my nose 'fore, last year I got kicked in the face in a soccer game. Jet fixed it. 'Sides, it didn't hurt as bad after Jet fixed it last time. Just go 'head 'an fix it." J.J. waved his right hand vaguely, staring up at Palmer and Jenny.

Palmer glanced over at Jenny, looking a little lost for words. Jenny shrugged, waving a hand to tell him to go on. "Okay, Jake, I want you to take a deep breath for me, and close your eyes." With a muffled 'crunch', J.J.'s nose was set back in its normal position.

J.J.'s left hand gripped tighter on the edge of the table for a moment as he sucked in a breath, blinking his eyes rapidly. Finally, he took another deep breath and sat up, scrubbing a hand across his face. "Thanks."

Jenny raised her eyebrows, rolling her chair forward towards the table. "You seem to have an unusual pain tolerance, J.J."

"Broke my leg, when I was three, fell offa jungle gym." He shrugged, kicking the aforementioned leg up. "After that, scrapes n' stuff don't hurt much anymore. 'S like what Batman says: Whatever doesn't hurt ya, makes you stronger."

"Of course. Can't rag Batman." Palmer grinned, cutting out a small gauze square to bandage the cut across J.J.'s nose. "Why do we fall?..."

"So we can learn to pick ourselves back up again." J.J. completed the quote without thinking, giving Palmer a grin. "You like Batman?"

"Hm…yeah, I like him. More preferential to Green Lantern, but, I like Batman, he's cool." Palmer shrugged good-naturedly, carefully taping down the gauze over the cut. "Is Batman your favorite superhero, then?"

"Yep. I'm kinda like him. His mum 'n dad are gone, my mum's gone."J.J. allowed Palmer to put his hand on an x-ray plate, rambling away at the connections between him and Batman as the x-ray of his hand was taken.

Jenny laughed softly, leaning against the autopsy table as she watched Palmer splint J.J.'s fingers. "Is that everything, Mr. Palmer?"

Palmer looked J.J. over one last time, checking for any other injuries. "No, Director, I think that's it." He helped J.J. tug his t-shirt back over his head, carefully avoiding his broken fingers and nose. "You're all set, big guy."

J.J. smiled, ducking his head. "Thanks, Mr. Palmer."

"Oh, no, don't call me that, please, my dad's Mr. Palmer. I always go by Jimmy." Palmer helped him down from the table. "Don't listen to what Ducky calls me."

J.J. smiled wider, bumping his left fist against Palmer's extended one. "Ok, Jimmy. You can call me J.J., if ya want."

"Will do, J.J. Glad I could help." Palmer grinned, crouching down to J.J.'s level. "Now, just, don't mess with your fingers or your nose, and get Gibbs to change out that bandage on your nose later tonight, okay?"

J.J. nodded. "Righto." He looked over at Jenny. "Can we go see Jet now?"

Jenny shook her head. "Jet's out on a case right now, you're going to spend the rest of the day with me. Jet said he'd be back later this afternoon."

He grinned in reply, following her to the elevator. "Why don't this one have a scanner-thingy?"

"Doesn't, not don't, J. And, we don't need a retinal scanner here, this is just the regular elevator for everyone to use." Jenny corrected him calmly, pressing the button for her floor.

"Hm." J.J. followed Jenny out of the elevator, looking out over the catwalk. "Whoa. Why does Jet work down there? It's a lot cooler lookin' up here."

Jenny laughed softly. "Well, Jet isn't Director, so…he can't have an office up here. Besides, I think he likes it down there, J."

"Eh." J.J. walked along the catwalk to her office, smiling and waving at Cynthia. He walked around Jenny' desk and settled himself in her chair, spinning it around for a minute. "Your chair's more comfy than his."

Jenny laughed, setting his pack down on the conference table. "Hey, perks to being the big boss, bud."

He rolled his eyes, sliding back down out of her chair to walk over to the table. "Can we get somethin' to eat? I kinda missed lunch, sittin' in the nurse's office."

She nodded. "Sure. I'll have Cynthia order us some Chinese, sound good?"

* * *

Three hours later, Jenny and J.J. sat on the floor across from each other, a game board between them. Jenny rolled the die, scowling at the number that showed up. "I think this game is rigged."

J.J. giggled, rolling his eyes. "No…I'm doin' okay. S' not my fault you're a bad roller."

Cynthia stuck her head in the doorway. "Here are the drinks you requested, ma'am." She carried in two soda cans, crouching to set them down next to her boss. "I…I ah, see J.J.'s winning again, ma'am."

He promptly dissolved into giggles again at the petulant look that flashed across Jenny's face. "She's a bad roller, Miss Cynthia."

"I can see that, J.J. Ah…how many times did you win, again?" Cynthia barely withheld a laugh, her face sobering slightly as Jenny glared at her.

"Four." The corner of his mouth twitched up in a small smirk. "Jenny almost won the first game."

Cynthia bit back another laugh. "Er…right. Agent Gibbs' team just returned, ma'am."

"Oh, good. Send him up---nevermind." Jenny let out a short sigh as Gibbs walked in. "I'd ask why you didn't knock, but, the door was open, so I suppose I should have expected that."

Gibbs smirked, an unrepentant grin flashing across his face. "Hey, now, what did I always tell ya about anticipating, Jen?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Jenny rolled her eyes as she took his offered hand, standing fluidly. "You're back earlier than you said you would be."

"The lead was bad. Took less time than I thought it would." Gibbs shrugged, turning his attention to J.J., who sat on the floor. "You wanna tell me why I got a call from your principal today, Jacob?"

J.J. paled as he scrambled to his feet, his gaze dropping to the floor between Jethro's feet. "I got in a fight."

"Excuse me?"

"I said I got in a fight, sir." J.J. swallowed, lifting his gaze to Gibbs. "Hugo was pickin' on Katie again for not havin' a mum 'n dad, and I was just tryin' to help her out…Sir."

"What did I tell you about fighting?" Gibbs let out an exasperated sigh, folding his arms over his chest.

"Er…Don't fight in front of the teachers, sir?" J.J. tilted his head to the side, looking confused.

"I…well, yeah, I did tell you that, but…what else did I tell you?" Jethro's face flushed slightly as Jenny bit back a smirk.

"Don't pick fights with people bigger than me?"

"I…well, okay, I told you that too, but…" Gibbs groaned as Jenny let out a muffled giggle. "Jake, you can't go picking a fight with someone just because they're teasing someone else. You go tell a teacher and let them handle it."

"But you told me that tellin' on someone makes ya a rotten person."

"Oy…" Gibbs let out another groan as Jenny finally lost the lid on her suppressed giggles, leaning against the desk as she laughed. "Jake, look, you can't take everything I say literally. Going to tell your teacher would be the right thing to do in that situation."

"Oh, man, I haven't laughed that hard in quite some time." Jenny shook her head, wiping a few tears of laughter out of her eyes. "You set yourself up for that one, Jethro."

J.J. still stood in front of Gibbs, his head tilted in confusion. "So…am I still in trouble? Sir?"

Jethro glanced over at Jenny before shaking his head slowly. "No, J, you're not in trouble. I…we'll talk about it later. Just, next time, you go tell a teacher, alright?" He waited for J.J.'s nod before continuing. "C'mon, it's about time I get you home."

"Can Jenny come, too?" J.J. was already headed over to the couch, grabbing his backpack in his good hand.

"I…I don't see why not. Jen, you want to tag along for dinner?"

* * *

"Alright, De La Hoya, bedtime." Gibbs sat on the couch next to Jenny, a beer gripped in his right hand. J.J. lay on the floor in front of them, watching the TV avidly.

"Je-e-et, I don't wanna! It's Friday, and I'm not tired!" J.J. rolled over on his back, looking up at the two adults as he protested. "Jenny, do I have to?"

Jenny shifted, tucking her feet up under her body as she took a sip of her own beer. "Jake, you better listen to Jet. If he says it's bedtime, it's bedtime."

The boy huffed, rolling over to clamber to his feet. "You're no fun." He further emphasized his displeasure by stomping his feet loudly on the stairs.

"Hey! You keep doin' that, and you're going straight to bed without a story, Jake!" Jethro tilted his head back on the couch with a sigh. "I'd forgotten how hard it is to get a kid to go to bed when they don't want to."

"Jet! I'm ready for bed!" J.J.'s faint shout could be heard. Gibbs set his beer down and stood, heading upstairs.

"Aaalrighty, what story am I readin' tonight? Sleeping Beauty? Cinderella?" He settled down against J.J.'s bed, pulling his reading glasses out of the bedside table.

"No way! Those are girl stories. You promised we'd keep readin' the Bilbo story, Jet. I wanna hear more of the Bilbo story." J.J. hugged a battered Sylvester stuffed animal to his chest, settling back against his pillow, staring over at Gibbs.

"Okay, fine, The Hobbit it is, then." He leaned over to scan the bookshelf, running his finger along the titles until he found the correct one. "Here we are. What chapter were we on, again?"

"Chapter 5. You started readin' it last night, but stopped a few pages in. You was readin' about Gollum."

"Ah, right, Chapter 5. Let's see… Gollum, Gollum…ah, here it is. Chapter 5." Jethro settled back against the bed again, his reading glasses perched on his nose. He flicked his gaze to the door where Jenny stood for a moment, clearing his throat. "Do I have to do the voices?"

"Yup."

"Of course…well, here goes: _Gollum got into his boat and shot off from the island, while Bilbo was sitting on the brink altogether flummoxed and at the end of his way and his wits. Suddenly up came Gollum and whispered and hissed:"_

He paused and cleared his throat a bit before continuing in a raspy voice, making J.J. giggle. "_…'Bless us an' splash us, precious! I guess it's a choice feast; at least a tasty morsel it'd make us, __**Gollum!**__"_

Jenny smiled as she listened to Jethro's gruff baritone reading the book to his adopted son_.  
_

Gibbs continued on reading the story, supplying funny voices for each different character as he went. Jenny gradually moved to sit on the far end of J.J.'s bed, tucking her legs up Indian-style, enthralled with listening to Jethro read.

"'_What's the matter?' Bilbo called. 'What have you lost?'"_Jethro voiced Bilbo in a slightly higher pitch than his own voice, inflecting it with a slight British accent. He abruptly changed his voice to a guttural rasp to voice the slimy Gollum. _"'It mustn't ask us,' shrieked Gollum.'Not its business, no, __**Gollum!**__ It's lost, __**Gollum, Gollum, Gollum.'**__" _He glanced over at J.J., now sound asleep with Sylvester clutched tightly in his arms. He lowered his voice slightly, marking his place in the book by dog-earing a page. "And, that's enough for tonight."

Jenny carefully stood from the bed, following Gibbs out of the room. She waited in the hall as he carefully pulled the door almost closed, walking back downstairs to the couch. "You're a good storyteller, Jethro."

He took a long drink of his beer, ducking his head self-consciously. "I'm not that good, really."

"Fine, don't take a compliment, then, but I thought you were great." Jenny shrugged one shoulder slightly, sipping at her beer. "Kinda cute, really, with all the voices and whatnot."

Jet flushed red, taking another long drink of beer to cover his embarrassment. "Thanks." He set the empty bottle down on the coffee table in front of them. "I'm going to get another. You want one?"

"No, I better not, I've got to drive home tonight."

He nodded, moving towards the kitchen, before he paused mid-step. "You know, Jen, it's the weekend, you could…well, no, never mind." He shook his head vigorously as if trying to clear it, resuming his walk to the kitchen.

Jenny frowned, setting her half-empty bottle down as she stood, following him into the kitchen. "What?"

"I…I was saying, it's the weekend, you could, take a little break from things, stay with us for the weekend. Y'know, if you want to. If not, it's fine." He ducked his head into the fridge as he spoke. "J.J. would be thrilled, he's always asking if you can stay." His ramblings trailed off as he re-emerged from the fridge, a beer gripped tightly in his hand. He glanced at her nervously. "But, I mean, only if you want. You don't have to."

She smiled, walking over to him and hopping up on the counter. "If you wanted me to stay, all you had to do was ask, Jethro."

Jethro relaxed, looking relieved. "Right, okay." He paused, glancing at the beer in his hand, before he set it down on the counter next to her, leaning forward tentatively. He met her gaze, waiting for her to back away, his breath ghosting over her lips. Jenny blinked once, meeting his gaze once more before bridging the gap between them, pressing her lips against his, her hand coming up to wind in his short silver hair.

He broke the kiss after a long moment, their breaths mingling as he rested his forehead against hers. "Jen…I, if you don't want this, just say the word." She shook her head, giving him a bright grin as her fingers tightened their hold in his hair, pulling him closer until their lips met again.

Jenny broke away for a breath, the thin fingers of her other hand reaching for the front of his shirt. "No, Jethro, I want this. I'm not going to leave. Not anymore."

* * *

_**A/n: Annnnd, I will leave this chapter off there. It's getting long anyways.(And yes, I know, I'm mean, leaving all of you hanging like that XD)**_

_**Woo Chapter 4! Or, um, something like that. **_

_**Okay, a few things for you to note: **_

_**a) I'm not condoning fights at school in any way. Just based a few things off of some personal experiences.**_

_**b) The book Gibbs is reading? **__**The Hobbit**__**, by J.R.R. Tolkien.**_

_**c) Will there be more Jibbs after this? Oh, of course! **_

_**And so, there be Chapter 4. Things will start progressing faster after this. Next chapter will probably be set during the last few episodes in Season 3, thematically. Just, so you know. **_

_**Reviews are lovely… :P**_

_**-Meg**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/n: Chapter 5! **_

_**We're now delving into the Jibbs centric part of the story. This chapter is set right around Season 3 Episode 22, Jeopardy. (That's right, Jenny's gettin' kidnapped, if the title hadn't told you that already.) **_

_**This is a week or so after Chapter 4. Jenny is staying at Gibbs' house more often, etc., etc.**_

_**Read, and review!**_

_**-meg

* * *

**_

5. Kidnapped!

"Je-e-nny, I'm booooored." J.J. lay on the couch with his head in Jenny's lap, flicking aimlessly through the TV channels.

"Sorry, Jake, there's not much on TV." Jenny ran her fingers through his hair a few times, giving him an apologetic look. "You want to put a movie in?"

"Nah. When's Jet gonna be back?" He shifted around a little, drumming the fingers of his left hand against the splinted ones of his right.

"Good question. I'm not really sure, Jake, he said he needed to go pick a few things up." Jenny did, in fact, know exactly when Jethro was going to be back, and what was accompanying him, but she wasn't about to reveal that secret to J.J.

"Hmph. Do you hafta go to work tomorrow?" J.J. moved on from his original line of questioning. "I don't hafta go to school tomorrow, why do you an' Jet gotta go work?"

"You don't have to go to school because it's a teacher workday, Jake. Jet and I still have to go to work, bud." She gently ran her fingers through his hair again, smiling briefly at the way it spiked up in places. "If we can't find a babysitter, you'll have to come to the office for the day with us."

"Can I stay in your office?" He sat up rapidly, tucking his legs under his body Indian-style. "The bullpen's boring."

Jenny nodded after a moment, thinking. "Yes, I suppose you can stay in my office, as long as I don't have any big meetings tomorrow. If I do, you'll have to head back to Child-Care."

J.J. frowned distastefully at the mention of NCIS' daycare facilities for employees with children. "You better not have any meetings, then."

She laughed softly, leaning over to tousle his hair teasingly. "I'll make sure to re-arrange my schedule just for you, bud."

J.J. snickered softly, ducking away from her teasing. He hopped up from his position on the couch, frowning at the TV moodily after a moment. "Can we call Jet, see what's takin' so long?"

Jenny tilted her head towards the front door, a small smirk playing across her lips as she heard the tell-tale slamming of a car door out in front of the house. "Actually, Jake…he's here right now. He just pulled up."

She smiled, watching as J.J.'s face lit up; the little boy scrambling off the couch in his hurry to be at the door to greet Jethro. She followed at a more sedate pace, leaning casually against the stair banister to view the proceedings as Jethro opened the front door.

"Jet! You're back!" J.J. jumped forward excitedly, stopping abruptly when he saw what accompanied his adopted father into the house. "PUPPY!" His voice rose to a near shout as he took in the small, golden furred German Shepherd-Labrador Retriever mix in Jethro's arms.

Jethro's blue eyes flashed in amusement as he watched J.J.'s reaction. He crouched down, setting the dog on the floor. "That would be what this is called, yes."

"You got me a puppy?" J.J. giggled as the puppy stumbled forward into his outstretched arms, wriggling around excitedly.

"No, we've only got him for the day." Jethro's deadpan reply caused J.J. to look up, alarmed, his arms wrapping around the dog protectively.

Jenny shook her head, moving to hit Jethro's shoulder sharply. "Jethro, don't be mean." She smiled at J.J., rolling her eyes. "Jake, Jet's kidding, you can really keep it."

Jethro shrugged unrepentantly, reaching around to slip an arm around her waist, tugging her close and kissing her cheek as he nudged the door shut with his foot. His gaze shone happily as he watched J.J. roll around on the floor with the puppy. "I take it you like him then, Jake?"

J.J. burst out laughing as the puppy balanced on his small chest, excitedly licking his face. "He's awesome!" He moved to push the puppy to the side, sitting up to stare at Jenny and Jet. "I really get to keep him?"

Jet chuckled, slowly nodding his head. "You really get to keep him, yes. He needs a name, though."

Jenny slipped out of his grasp, crouching down gracefully to play with the puppy with J.J. "What are you going to name him, Jake?"

J.J. scratched the puppy's belly absentmindedly, his brow furrowing in thought. "Hmm…I dunno. What's a good name for a dog?"

Jethro joined the other two on the floor, a small smile tugging at his lips as the puppy stumbled his way over into his lap. The smile widened as he playfully teased the dog with his hand, running it around like a spider on the floor. "Depends. Had a dog named 'Dammit', when I was a kid."

"Jethro!" Jenny leveled a glare at him, shaking her head. "Jake, don't name your dog Dammit. Jet's kidding around again."

"I'm serious! He was this kinda sandy brown mutt that followed me home from the fishin' hole one afternoon. Dad was ticked off, tried to send him away, but he just kept comin' back. Eventually, he just started responding to 'dammit'. I called him D, most of the time." Jethro raised his hands in a placating manner. "You can call him and ask, if you still don't believe me."

Jenny frowned. "Whatever. That's still no reason to name the poor thing Dammit."

J.J. giggled, shifting to lay on his stomach, resting his head on folded arms as he watched the puppy playfully bite at Jet's hand. "Didja have any other dogs?"

"Yeah. Had one named Socks, got him after Dammit ran away, and Uncle LJ had a big coon dog named Rex."

"Jethro…you're not helping the naming process at all." Jenny let out a sigh.

"What about you, Jenny? Did you ever have a dog?"

Jenny nodded. "Yeah. We had a Jack Russell named Spot, when I was really little; I think after that we had a Dachshund mix named Baxter, and then a Corgi named Sandy. I always wanted to get a big dog, but they scared Mom, so, we usually had small dogs. Dad got a big Labrador Retriever he named Duke after Mum…left." She shrugged nonchalantly. "Duke was the last dog I remember, once I went to college, Dad never really saw the point in getting another dog."

Jet's lips twitched briefly in a smirk at hearing that she once owned a dog named Duke, his eyes dancing with amusement. "What about one of your superheroes?"

"What?" J.J. glanced over at Jet inquisitively.

"I said, why don't you name him after one of your superheroes?"

J.J. frowned in thought again, finally glancing up with a bright smile. "Hey, that's a good idea!" His face fell after a moment. "But which one do I pick?"

Jenny shifted to mirror J.J.'s position, rolling over onto her stomach and pillowing her head on her arms. "That depends. Why don't you list off their names, and Jet and I will tell you if those are good names for a dog."

"Okay, well…there's Bruce Wayne, that's Batman, 'an then there's the Ninja Turtles like Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, and Raphael…" He trailed off, thinking of his favorite superheroes. "Uh…There's Iceman, his name was Bobby Drake, 'an James Logan, that's Wolverine. Oooh, or Gambit, his real name's Remy."

Jet chuckled softly, teasing the dog again with his hand. "Any others?"

"Mmmm…nope. Those are my fav'rites."

"Alright…any one in particular you really like?"

J.J. leaned forward to scratch the puppy's ears, resting his chin on his fist. "I'm gonna call him Gambit."

"Gambit? Well…okay, that was easy." Jet laughed, leaning over to rub Gambit's belly. "I'll get him dog tags later today at the store. Why don't you take him out in the backyard to play for a bit, J?"

Jenny gave Jethro an inquisitive look as they both watched J.J. run off towards the backyard, followed by Gambit. She let out a squeak of surprise as he rolled over to pin her on her back, a devilish smirk on his face. "Jethro!"

He grinned unrepentantly, leaning down to press his lips against hers in a heated kiss. Jenny relaxed into it for a moment, abruptly pulling away, flattening her hand against his chest; lowering her voice to a hiss. "Jethro! J.J.'s right outside! We can't do this here!"

Jethro smirked, lowering his head to kiss her again. "He's outside, with the dog. He'll be occupied for at least the next half hour. Think you can keep it quiet?"

Jenny gasped as he slid his cool hands up under her shirt, a distinctly wolfish grin playing across his lips. She pushed hard against his chest, shoving him away. "We're not doing this here in the middle of the house, Jethro."

With an exaggerated sigh, he rolled over to get to his feet, pulling Jenny with him up the stairs rapidly to his bedroom. "Better, your highness?"

Jenny bit back a snort of laughter and trailed a teasing finger down his chest, enjoying the sound of his breath hitching. "You better hurry, Jethro, before your son comes looking for us…"

His answering growl was distinctly predatory as he pulled her close for another kiss, backing them rapidly towards the bed.

* * *

"Wow."

"Mmm?" Jethro rolled over onto his back, one arm still wrapped loosely around Jenny's waist, the other behind his head as a pillow. His heavy breathing was starting to regulate itself as Jenny collapsed against his chest.

"That was…"

"Amazing?" He shifted to his side, levering himself up on his elbow, a cheeky grin creasing his face.

"Decidedly so." Jenny smirked, tracing her fingers lightly over his torso. "Risky, too, J.J. could come in at any time."

He laughed briefly, leaning over for another kiss before slipping out of bed to pull some clothes on. Jenny pulled the covers up around herself, a playful smirk tugging at her lips. "I appreciate the peep show, babe."

"Only for you." He gave her a roughish wink, slipping his jeans on. "You better get some clothes on, I'm sure J.J. will be looking for us." He walked over to the edge of the bed, leaning down for another kiss, which grew more heated as Jenny laced her fingers into his short silver hair. Neither noticed the presence of a third in the room until a voice piped up from near the doorway.

"Jet? Jenny?"

Jenny released Gibbs rapidly, tugging the covers more securely around herself, her cheeks flushing red. "Hey, there, Jake, what's wrong?"

"Why are you in bed? Are you sick? Why's Jet not got a shirt on?"

"Ah…where's Gambit, J?" Jet rapidly intervened, walking forward towards his son.

"Outside playin'. I came to see if you guys wanted to play with us. Where's your shirt?" J.J. tried peeking around Jet's legs to look at Jenny. "Why's Jenny in bed?"

"Hey, look, J, why don't you go play with Gambit, we'll be down in just a minute, kay?" Jet leaned down, shunting J.J. back towards the stairs and closing the bedroom door, which he collapsed back against. "That was close."

Jenny's face shifted between looking alternately mortified and amused for a few seconds before she lost the lid on her giggles. "I…what are we going to tell him?" She tossed the covers back, slipping off the bed to re-dress.

"Nothin', he'll forget about it eventually." Jet grinned suggestively at her, eyeing her curves as she slipped her jeans and blouse back on.

"Jethro! Stop that, and put a shirt on." Jenny leveled a mild glare at him as she finished buttoning her shirt.

"Thought you liked me without a shirt on?"

"God, you're insatiable." She rolled her eyes, whacking his shoulder lightly as he brushed past her to retrieve his discarded t-shirt.

"Eh, you love me for it." Jet winked suggestively, walking up behind her as she stood in front of the bureau mirror, fixing her hair. He slipped his arms around her waist, pulling her back into his body, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to the side of her neck.

"Jethro, stoppit." Jenny pushed his arms away, pulling her long red locks back into a messy ponytail. "Your _son_ is waiting outside."

"Jennnnny…" His voice was a plaintive whine.

"No, Jethro, we have to go. Out. Now." Jenny reached over, grabbing his wrist tightly and tugging him out of the room behind her.

"Stupid mutt was supposed to keep him _occupied_." Jet's disappointed grumblings followed Jenny down the stairs and out into the backyard.

"Jethro! Don't call Gambit a mutt! It's rude."

"Jen, Gambit's a _dog_. What the hell does he care?" Jethro's grumbling about the dog were silenced as the aforementioned animal bounded up, barking loudly and leaping up to paw at Jethro's leg. He grumbled under his breath, crouching down to scratch the obliging puppy's belly, a slight smile pulling at his lips.

The evening was filled with laughs and barks as the happy group enjoyed the remainder of their weekend.

* * *

"Jake, 's time to get up." Jenny leaned over J.J.'s bed carefully, shaking his shoulder lightly.

"Nooooo, Idon'wanna!" J.J. swatted vaguely at her hand, muffling his sleepy mumble in his pillow.

"Jake, seriously, you need to get up, you're coming to work with Jet and I." She shook his shoulder again, gently pulling the covers away from his body. "C'mon, kiddo. Up."

He sat up with a baleful glare, grumbling something unintelligible under his breath as he swung his legs over and hopped out of bed.

Jenny bit back a chuckle at his hair, which stuck up in the back, as she watched him disappear into the bathroom. "Fifteen minutes, Jake, okay?"

She smirked briefly at the unintelligible mumble she received in reply, turning around to walk back downstairs and into the kitchen, where Jethro stood, his silver hair still wet from the shower. "He's definitely your son, Jethro. Surly glares and grumbles are all I've managed out of him. I told him fifteen minutes."

"Hm. He'll be ready in seven." Gibbs gave her a nonchalant shrug, glaring at his coffeepot as if his stare would hurry the machine up.

"And you know that how…?" Jenny stretched up to grab to travel coffee mugs out of the cabinet, setting them within easy reach near the coffeepot, ready to be filled.

He tilted his head towards the stairs, listening. A satisfied smirk twitched across his lips as the muffled sounds of J.J.'s feet descended the stairs. "Habit."

"I see. Morning, Jake." Jenny accepted the full mug from Jethro with a smile, turning around to greet J.J. as he ambled into the kitchen, his hair still sticking up adorably in the back.

J.J. leveled a mild glare her way, shuffling over to the fridge. He emerged moments later with the orange juice carton at his lips, taking a long drink.

"Jake! Don't drink out of the carton!" Jenny admonished, moving forward to take the carton out of his hands. "Use a glass."

"Jet lets me drink outta the carton." J.J. reached over and took the juice back, taking another long drink before re-capping it and sticking the carton back in the fridge. He calmly stared down her raised eyebrow look, mumbling something that vaguely sounded like a 'hello' to his father. "We leavin' now?"

"Yup." Jet took a long sip of his coffee, heading out the front door after ensuring Gambit was safely ensconced in the living room with a few chew toys. "You got your pack?"

"Mmhmm. Gameboy, iPod, DVDs for Abby's lab, a change of clothes, two Snickers bars 'an a pack of Pop Tarts, a hacky sac, 'an my Rubik's cube." J.J. listed off the contents of his knapsack as he followed Jet and Jenny to the Challenger, clambering into the backseat.

The ride to NCIS was relatively silent and quick. J.J. had dozed off again by the time they arrived, and Jenny carefully reached in and lifted him out of the car, still fast asleep against her shoulder. She raised an eyebrow at Jet, freeing one hand to sign to him. **What do you want me to do with him?**

"We'll take 'im up to your office for a bit and let him get some more sleep on the couch. I'll come get him around 0900, take him down to Abby's if you've got meetings." He handed her the travel mug and slipped J.J.'s knapsack onto his shoulder, grabbing her briefcase as they walked to the elevator.

After walking Jenny and J.J. up to her office, Gibbs headed back down to the bullpen, murmuring a quiet greeting to his agents as he passed.

"Hey, Boss, got a lead on Brian Dempsey's whereabouts." Tony spoke up from his desk, waving a sheet of paper in the air.

"Take Ziva, go detain him." Gibbs took a long sip of his coffee, starting up his computer. "Officer David, I want this guy ALIVE, you hear me?"

Ziva gave a nod in response, grabbing her pack and following Tony to the elevators.

"Ma-Gee!"

"Yeah, boss?"

"Go see if Abby's got anything on the location of that shipment."

"Yes, boss."

* * *

"There's nothing _to_ tell, Ziva." Gibbs snapped his retort to her worried question as he turned to take the stairs up to Jenny's office two at a time, irritated beyond belief. How in the hell had he ended up with a problem this bad in four hours? Dempsey was dead, debatably killed by Ziva's restraining hold, and now he needed Jenny's help to figure out what to do with this damn case.

He frowned as he entered the outer office, seeing a reedy man in glasses sitting in the waiting area in front of Cynthia's desk. "She in?"

"They're still not back from lunch, and he's been here for half an hour."

"They?"

"I thought she told you. Uh…J.J. went with her. But…this isn't like her, Agent Gibbs. She's never been late for a meeting."

"Try her driver?"

"Stan's not answering his cell or pager. I've left him four messages." Cynthia gave him a worried look, glancing over at her computer. "I really don't know what else to do; I've been calling her cell phone."

Gibbs held up a finger, flipping his cell open and dialing a number from memory.

It rang a few times, and then picked up. _"Agent Gibbs."_

"Director." He was puzzled by her greeting and tone. She hadn't called him 'Agent Gibbs' on the phone for weeks now. It was always 'Jethro'. "We've got a problem here."

"_Sorry to hear that, Jethro, we've got quite the serious problem here ourselves." _

That worried him, but he pressed on. "I'm pretty sure you'll wanna hear my problem first."

"_I'm not entirely sure that's true."_

He heard a click, and rustling, before a cold sounding male voice came over the line, making his blood run cold.

"_You really should be listening to her problem, __**Jethro**__. You're holding my heroin and my baby brother. If I don't get both back in two hours, the brat gets to watch his Mummy die, and you get him back in little pieces. I'll call back with the details." _

The click of the phone sounded, before the dial tone buzzed out, a virtual death knell in his ear. He slumped against the doorway, pale, his phone slipping from nerveless fingers to fall on the floor.

"Agent Gibbs?" Cynthia's voice came to him as if from extremely far away. "Agent Gibbs, is everything alright? Did you get the Director?"

He finally managed to muster up enough energy for a whispered sentence. "Where'd they go?"

"Excuse me? I—I didn't quite catch that, sir."

"Where'd they go, for lunch?"

"Um, the Whitmore Hotel. She was supposed to meet with Senator Jessop, but he had to cancel, told her to keep the reservation. She called in at 11:45, and texted at 12:50 saying lunch was finished, they were headed back. She never checked in again."

"That's all you've got? There's not some meeting or something she could have brought J.J. along to?"

"No, sir, nothing, she should have headed back to NCIS." Cynthia glanced over at him, sounding worried. She lowered her voice slightly. "Is there something wrong?"

Gibbs stood tall again, motioning her into Jenny's office with a hand, closing the door behind him. "Director Shepard and J.J. have been kidnapped."

"I…what can I do?"

"Keep quiet."

"They're gonna be okay, right?" Cynthia's voice stopped him as he turned towards the door, his hand resting on the handle.

"They better be, or James Dempsey's gonna die a long, slow death." He wrenched the door open, blasting past the reedy man and leaving Cynthia standing in Jenny's office.

* * *

"Where'd you learn that Vulcan Death Grip, Zee-vah?"

He caught the tail end of Tony's questioning as he breezed back into the bullpen, dealing out a hard whack to the back of his Senior Agent's head.

"DiNozzo!"

"Ow…yeah, boss, sorry, I was just…"

"Shut up." Gibbs ignored the mumbled excuse, motioning to McGee sharply. "You, get over here."

Tony and McGee walked over to his desk, Ziva rotating her desk chair, waiting expectantly for his orders. "James Dempsey has taken Director Shepard and J.J. hostage. He wants his drugs, and his brother back, or they both die. We have two hours. Last contact was at the Whitmore Hotel. Driver's not responding. DiNozzo."

"On it!" Tony was already moving towards the elevator as Gibbs turned to McGee.

"Dempsey used the Director's cell."

"I'll start a trace." The computer geek turned back to his desk, his nimble fingers already flying over the keys.

"And me?" Ziva's accented voice rang out from his right, worried.

"Go get the Director's Rolodex from Cynthia, start making calls, see if anyone might have seen her and J.J. leave the Whitmore. There's got to be at least a few politicians who saw her at lunch."

"Desk work? Gibbs…put me in the field."

"No. Not happenin'."

"You need me out there!"

"NOT HAPPENIN'. I need you at your desk making calls. GO!" He walked back around his desk, heading upstairs to MTAC. "Clock's tickin' people!"

"Jenny can take care of herself, and J.J., Gibbs! She was a good agent!" Ziva's voice rose behind him as he jogged up the stairs.

"Still is."

* * *

Jenny sat, her hands tied; J.J. huddled in her lap, watching Dempsey holding the gun on them warily. He had tossed her phone soon after the call from Gibbs, and they were now pulling up to a private hangar on the outskirts of Potomac Airfield.

The man driving slowed the SUV to a stop, getting out quickly and coming around to her door, flinging it open. He grabbed J.J. roughly, his voice a low growl. "Out."

Dempsey spoke from just in front of them. "Easy there, Rudd, the kid's not one of your dates." He helped Jenny out of the car, walking her towards the hangar office.

"They wouldn't even be here if your idiot brother hadn't gotten arrested." Rudd set J.J. down, shoving him into Dempsey's grip.

"I gotta apologize for Alex, he takes some gettin' used to. Once ya get to know him, you really learn to hate him." He kept the gun pressed to her spine, nudging her forward. He released J.J. momentarily, wrenching the office door open and motioning them inside. "On your knees."

Jenny glared, moving away from him. Dempsey's eyes narrowed, and he leveled the gun on J.J. "Now." She acquiesced, watching as he moved about the room, grabbing a length of rope.

"You're wasting your time."

He snorted. "I'm just tryin' to make you two comfortable."

"I meant taking us hostage. They're never gonna negotiate."

"Oh, I wouldn't sell yourself so short." He grabbed a chair, glancing around for another.

"They're not allowed to."

"Oh, I don't know, Agent Gibbs seems pretty fond of you, and the boy." He retrieved a second chair, setting it against the back of the first. "I'm sure he'll make an exception."

"We busted your brother with five million in pure heroin, you think the Navy's just gonna give him back?"

Dempsey grabbed J.J., setting him in one chair before he leveled the gun at him again. "Stand up."

She stood gracefully to her feet.

"In the chair."

Jenny sat, her back to J.J. with her arms pinned behind her, tied as they were.

Dempsey looped the rope around both of them, talking all the while, seemingly more to J.J. than her. "I am sorry about this, kid. My baby brother, he kinda has a habit of getting us in trouble, and I'm the one who bails us out."

Jenny winced slightly as he tightened the rope. "You didn't break somebody's window with a baseball, James, you kidnapped the _Director _of a _Federal Agency_, not to mention the son of one of its most prominent agents."

"Yeah, you got a point. But look on the bright side…this'll be over soon, one way or another." He finished tying the knots and walked over to look out the window.

"Stanley?" Jenny voiced her concern for her long-time driver.

"Excuse me?"

"My driver."

Dempsey turned back to the window, his eyes guarded. "He's fine. Might be a little uncomfortable, we stuffed him in your trunk. See, I'm not a bad guy. I just want the drugs you stole from me, and my brother back." He stared at them one last time, before turning to walk back out into the hangar.

Jenny let out a low sigh, her thin fingers already moving around, trying to slip the ties on her wrists.

"Jenny?" J.J.'s voice was quiet, with the faintest hint of fear in it. He hadn't said a thing since Rudd had backhanded him for attempting to prevent Jenny being tied up, his face pale and scared.

"Everything's gonna be okay, Jake, don't worry."

"You said NCIS don't negotiate with bad guys."

Jenny cursed herself mentally for voicing that aloud earlier in her lecture to their captors. "Jake…I was just saying that to try and get him to let us go, to realize he wasn't gonna get anything out of this."

"So we're gonna get outta here?"

Jenny sighed internally, ignoring the ominous feeling in her gut, and summoned up the positive thoughts to bolster J.J. "I'll get us out of here, bud."

"Promise?"

"I promise, Jake. Besides, you know Jet's doing everything in his power to find us and get us back." She wriggled her hands again, rejoicing internally as she felt the first few loops of rope around her hands slip. "We'll get out of here okay, promise. Just one thing, Jake. If I tell you to get out, to run away without me, you _have_ to listen to me, okay?"

She heard a very small 'okay' from the other side of the chair, and returned to working free of their bonds.

* * *

Gibbs jerked the phone from his belt as it rang, cutting through the silence of the NCIS garage. "Yeah, Gibbs."

"_Boss…we've got a problem. I'm at the Whitmore, found the Director's car. Uh…" _

"DiNozzo! Spit it out!"

"_Stan…Stan's dead. They shot him."_

He had to fight to keep the phone in his now nerveless hand. "And Jenny…J.J.?"

"_No sign of 'em, Boss. The kidnappers must've switched cars, killed Stan and hid her car down here with the rest of the government issues."_

"I…alright, I'll send a team out, you get back here once they secure the scene." He shut the phone with a 'snap', sinking down against one of the cement pillars in the garage, his head in his hands.

"Jethro." Ducky's accented brogue broke through his thoughts.

"He's got both of 'em, Duck."

"I know, Jethro, but you can't lose hope. You'll find them, I know you will." Ducky crouched slightly to look his friend in the eye. "But, sitting down here in a parking garage is doing Jennifer and Jake absolutely no good whatsoever. You need to go co-ordinate with Agent Yates, and find them."

"I can't lose them, Duck. I—I can't do that, not again." He looked up, his voice hoarse.

"You won't." Ducky stood up, holding out a hand. "Come on, up you go."

Gibbs took the offered hand, regaining his feet and composing himself. "You found a cause of death for Dempsey yet?"

"No. You'll get my report when this is finished." Ducky clapped a hand on his shoulder. "What I have so far is inconclusive. Now, go co-ordinate with Agent Yates, and find Jennifer and Jake."

"If I didn't know any better, Duck, I'd say you were tryin' to tell me what to do."

"Oh, no, Jethro, I wouldn't _dream_ of doing that." Ducky let out a short chuckle, guiding his friend back to the elevator.

* * *

"Nice plane out there. G-3, right?" Jenny carefully maneuvered the sliver of metal towards her with her heel, keeping a wary eye on Dempsey.

"I wouldn't know."

"Range: 4100 nautical miles, unless you risk re-fueling…but, you don't look like the European type to me." She paused, finally trapping the metal under her foot. "I'm thinking more Mexico or the Carribean."

Dempsey turned around to look at her, thoughtful. "Mexico would be nice. My baby brother's always wanted to see Cabo."

"Maybe you can take him there…in thirty to forty years."

Rudd flung the door open, storming in. "Where's your pilot, Dempsey?"

"I told you, he's on his way!"

Rudd glared, turning his gaze towards Jenny and J.J. "What the hell?! You've got them right in front of the window!"

Jenny cursed mentally as Rudd strode over, dragging their joined chairs further back in the room. "I tried to tell him."

"No one's gonna see her!"

"That's a dangerous assumption! Who knows how many people saw you stuff us in the back of your car? You've kidnapped the _head_ of a _Federal Agency_. They take that _very_ seriously."

Rudd turned to Dempsey, irritated. "Look. I know you're tight with your brother, mate, but you are not thinking!"

"She's just messing with you!"

"Well, she's doing a good job of it." Rudd gestured to the two of them. "How exactly do you see this thing working out? We should have just shot her, like that damn driver, and dumped the kid."

"I gave NCIS two hours! They've only got 58 minutes left. Just relax."

"We're gone as soon as your flyboy shows up."

"We're not leavin' without my brother!"

Rudd snapped, lunging forward to pin Dempsey against the wall. "IT'S YOUR BROTHER'S FAULT WE'RE IN THIS MESS! Now I've gotta explain to my bosses how you lost our product and you don't have the money to pay for it!"

"I'm gettin' it back!"

Rudd released him, stepping back and smoothing his suit down. "Yeah? Good luck with that, 'cause I'm not sticking around to find out." He walked back out of the office, slamming the door.

"Looks like you have a difficult decision, James. It's either him, or your brother."

"AAAARGH!" Dempsey howled in anger, kicking the wall of the office.

Jenny wiggled her hands slowly, working the last few loops of rope off of her hands. "His name was Stanley."

"What?!?" Dempsey had taken to pacing around the office, glaring at the cell phone in his hand.

"The man you murdered, in the parking garage, James."

He stopped his pacing, turning to stare at her. "I didn't kill your driver." He looked almost apologetic. "I tried to stop it."

"Good. Then you still have a chance to get out of this." She tilted her head slightly, hearing the sounds of the jet sitting in the hangar starting up. "Which is more than I can say for your _boss_ out there."

"He's not my boss. He's a business partner."

"Well I'd keep an eye on your business partner, if I were you."

"Yeah? Why's that?" Dempsey tensed as the sounds of the jet engines warming up rang throughout the hangar.

"'Cause it sounds like he's about to leave you."

Dempsey sprinted out of the office, shouting something vague.

Jenny frantically went back to working on their bonds. "Jake."

"Y—yeah?"

"I've almost got these ropes loose. Once I get them off, I want you to get out of here and go hide. You understand me?"

"B—But…I—I can't leave you here!"

"Jake. Answer me. Do you understand me?"

"I…"

"_Jake_."

"O.K."

Jenny slipped the last loop of rope off them as the door flew open. "Jake, go!"

Rudd stormed into the room, cocking his gun. She waited until he stood close enough before standing, her arm snapping out in an automatic disarming blow. J.J. wriggled out of the ropes, running around Jenny and Rudd's fighting forms as he headed for the office door.

The simultaneous roar of two gunshots silenced the struggles in the room.

"_Jenny!"

* * *

_

"Ma-Gee!"

"Yeah Boss?"

"You got anything for me?"

"Abby and I managed to narrow down Brian Dempsey's spending habits, and she found some—"

"McGee! Let me tell him!" Abby whacked his shoulder sharply before turning back to Gibbs. "I found fire suppressant foam in the shoe goop. McGee managed to narrow it down, there's only one airport in the area that used the foam recently, Potomac Airfield."

Gibbs nearly sank to the ground in relief. "We got a hangar number?"

"Working on it, Boss." McGee was still typing away furiously at his computer. "I'm searching for planes scheduled to take off."

"Alright. Call me when you've got the number, McGee. Let's go, people!"

Cassie and Tony immediately jumped into action, suiting up in tactical gear. Gibbs turned to go, spinning back at the last second, looking at Ziva, who sat at her desk. "Hey. HEY!" Ziva glanced up, surprised. "C'mon!"

* * *

"_Boss, it's Hangar Three. That's the only hangar on the airfield with a flight registered to leave today. We're sending you the coordinates."_

Gibbs gave a guff acknowledgement before he closed the phone, walking back over to where Cassie, Tony, and Ziva stood. "Hangar Three. We'll go in pairs, Ziva with me. Cass, you go with To—" The rest of his order was cut off by the ringing of his cell.

He jerked the phone off of his belt, snapping it open. "WHAT, Ma-Gee? You get the Hangar wrong or somethin'?"

"_D—Dad?"_ J.J's quiet voice issued out of the earpiece, hitting him like a sucker-punch to the gut.

"J.J.? Where are you? Are you okay? Where's Jenny?"

"_We're both fine, Jethro. We're at Pot—"_

"Potomac Airfield, Hangar Three. We know. You're…you're alright, Jen?" He waved the others off, sinking to the ground wearily next to the sedan.

"_Honestly, Jethro, we're fine. Look…we'll wait out in front of the hangar for you, I assume you're already on the way."_

"We'll be right there, Jen. Keep—make sure you guys stay safe." He let his head fall back against the car as he closed the phone.

"Boss?"

"They're aright. That was Jen."Gibbs opened his eyes, standing back up. "Let's go."

J.J. and Jenny stood outside the hangar when the blue NCIS issue sedan pulled up. Gibbs climbed out of the front seat, staring at his son and girlfriend as if they were apparitions. "You're okay?"

J.J. sprinted forward, launching himself into Jethro's arms, where he tucked his head into the crook of his father's neck. Jethro stared at Jenny over J.J.'s head, visibly checking her for injuries.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, giving him a reassuring nod. "I'm fine, Jethro, my shoulder hurts a bit from my fall, but that's it."

"Dempsey?"

Jenny jerked her head over her left shoulder, towards the hangar office, mouthing 'he's dead' to Jet. "Rudd's in there, too."

"C'mere." He motioned with his free hand, reaching out to take her hand when she approached. He pulled her in tight for a hug, wrapping his free arm around her shoulders. He pressed a chaste kiss to her temple, murmuring softly against her skin. "I thought I lost you two."

Jenny gripped the lapel of his jacket tightly in her hand, leaning her head against his shoulder, playfully nudging J.J.'s head with her own. She rubbed her free hand up and down J.J.'s back slowly.

"Er…boss? Director?" Tony's voice sounded tentatively behind them. "Everything alright?"

Jenny collected herself, stepping back slightly and turning to face DiNozzo. "We're alright, Agent DiNozzo." She stepped closer, leaving Jethro with J.J. for the time being. "I—Dempsey and Rudd…their bodies are in the office. Can you…J.J. doesn't need to see any more of that. We need a team here to take care of the scene."

Tony nodded. "Cassie and I can take care of it. Ziva can escort you guys back to NCIS."

Jenny managed a half smile, setting her hand on his shoulder briefly. "Thank you, Tony."

* * *

Nearly six hours later, after countless interviews and phone calls, the yellow Dodge Challenger pulled up in front of the Gibbs home. Jenny climbed out of the passenger seat carefully, a sound asleep J.J. held in her arms.

"C'mon, let's get him to bed." Jethro unlocked the front door, catching an excited Gambit with his foot before the dog lunged out the door. Jenny stepped around them both, heading for the stairs. "Oh, Jethro, we forgot all about Gambit, poor thing's probably starving."

"He's fine, Jen, I called my neighbor a few hours ago, had her daughter come over to feed him and let him out. He didn't even chew anything." He clicked his tongue at the dog, motioning up the stairs. "C'mon, boy, time for bed."

He followed Jenny upstairs, stopping her with a hand on her shoulder when she went to duck into J.J.'s room. "He'll have nightmares, it's better if we keep him with us for tonight."

Jenny nodded. "He still needs to get changed."

"Here, I'll take him; you go get ready for bed."

Jet carried a still sleeping J.J. into the bedroom a few minutes later, the boy now clad in Batman pajama pants and a plain grey t-shirt, the ever-present Sylvester squished between his body and his father's.

He climbed into the bed after stripping down to his boxers and undershirt, reaching over to pull Jenny and J.J. closer, setting one each on either side of him.

Jenny was nearly asleep, her head resting against his shoulder, when she heard a plaintive whine from somewhere near the end of the bed. Jethro let out a long sigh, muttering under his breath. "C'mon, Gambit, up." The dog appeared at the end of the bed, padding up to ensconce himself firmly next to J.J.'s feet, laying his head on Jethro's thigh. Jethro turned a mild glare on the pup, his eyebrow raised. "Don't get used to this, mutt."

_Whack._

"Ow, what the hell, Jen?"

Jenny grinned against his shoulder, her hand rising up to pat his face patronizingly. "You big softy."

A sleepy mumble from the other occupant in the bed silenced both. "If you two don' shut up, I'm tellin' Tonio 'bout how I caught you this weekend kissin', an' that Jenny had no clothes on."

J.J. grinned to himself at the silence, snuggling further into his father's embrace with a contented sigh. Everything was all better, now.

* * *

_**Annnd, done. Dang that was long. **_

_**Yes, I am skipping Hiatus I and II, I'm not gonna mess up the poor kid any more than he already is. **_

_**I'm debating nixing the whole Grenouille storyline, too, or at least making Jenny less of a crazy, manipulative b****. But, I figure, what with Gibbs' white knight complex, there's no way he'll just let her go AWOL and run some op on her own if they're all lovey dovey dating and stuff, so we'll see.**_

_**Read and review, please! Tell me what you think! **_

_**Oh, and I might do a one-shot about Tony finding out that big secret J.J.'s threatening with. Maybe. **_

_**-meg :P**_


	6. Chapter 6

6. Shenanigans

J.J. Gibbs was playing Bond again, as one Anthony DiNozzo would say. He peered around the divider in the bullpen, a Nerf gun gripped tightly in his hands.

How his dad had gotten Jenny's approval to play dart tag at NCIS on their Saturday off was beyond him, but he suspected it probably involved kissing. Or, at least, that was usually how Jet got Jenny to agree to things. Kissing or no, the entirety of Team Gibbs was now at NCIS on a Saturday, kitted out in dart tag gear.

J.J. had claimed the right to captainship of one of the teams, being the youngest by a good 20 years, and had picked Jenny, Ziva, and McGee for his team, leaving Jet to work with Tony, Jimmy, and Abby. Ducky had stepped back from the picking, claiming that he was a little too old to be running about NCIS with a dart gun, and said he would remain as a referee.

His recon of the bullpen revealed no enemies, so he decided to move on to the staircase and perhaps Abby's lab. He passed McGee as he snuck past his father's desk, heading for the back stairs, and motioned for the agent to follow him. McGee and J.J. leapfrogged down the staircase, each going down a few steps at a time to cover the other. They both froze as a muffled 'thump' sounded in front of them. J.J. glanced at McGee and then charged, both firing darts as rapidly as the toy guns would go.

Tony appeared from around the corner after a moment, the majority of his front covered in darts. He held his hands up in surrender, allowing the gun in his hands to hang free. "Hm. Guess I still need to work on my ninja moves."

J.J. smirked and rolled his eyes in response, taking Tony's gun and extra darts before they moved on. McGee was about to cross in front of the doorway to Abby's lab when J.J. shot out a hand and grabbed the back of his belt, shaking his head. McGee glanced back at the boy, his brow furrowed in confusion, watching as J.J. pantomimed something.

He raised an eyebrow and shrugged, shaking the hand loose and continuing on his way.

_Shup!_

One well placed shot from Gibbs, who laid prone on the lab's floor, the Nerf version of a sniper rifle gripped in his hands, incapacitated McGee. J.J. wisely used the ensuing chaos to sprint past the door, keeping McGee's body in front of him as a shield. He disappeared down the hall rapidly, leaving McGee behind to deal with his father.

"Ah, crap." McGee set his rifle down with a sigh, shaking his head. "Shoulda figured you'd be hiding there, Boss."

Gibbs merely smirked in reply, standing fluidly from his prone position. He took McGee's handheld gun, slinging the strap for his sniper rifle over one shoulder. "Anticipate, Tim. You gotta learn to anticipate." With that gem of Gibbs-dom and a wink, he slipped around his junior agent, heading off in the same direction as J.J.

Twenty minutes later, the remnants of the two teams convened in the bullpen, Jenny and Ziva carrying a victorious J.J. on their shoulders. Abby and Palmer had been taken out by Ziva within the first five minutes of the game, and with J.J. and McGee's knockout of Tony, Team Gibbs was down to one. Gibbs himself had been taken out by a rather skillful shot on Jenny's part after he had blindly followed J.J. into the trap set on the staircase between Abby's lab and the bullpen.

"How did you even…nevermind, I don't want to know where you learned that, Jake."

J.J. grinned, winking at Jet as he high-fived Jenny. "Learnt it from you, Dad."

"I…what?"

"You tol' me stairs were a good place to trap somebody." J.J. smirked imperceptibly, his eyes flashing with amusement.

Jet shrugged in response, setting his gun and vest down on his desk. "Whatever you say, Jake. C'mon, everyone, time to go home."

* * *

_Two Days Later_

"Director Shepard? I've got ah… Captain Rabb and Lt. Colonel MacKenzie from JAG, here to see you." Cynthia stuck her head in the door.

Jenny raised her eyebrows. "Captain Rabb? I…well, alright, send them in."

Captain Harmon Rabb, Jr. and Lt. Colonel Sarah MacKenzie entered the office with polite nods to Cynthia, smiling at Jenny. Rabb moved first, stepping forward to give Jenny a hug. "Hey, Jenny. It's good to see you."

"Harm? Sarah?" Jenny embraced Rabb and then MacKenzie tightly, giving them both a wide grin. "God, it's been ages. How are you?"

Mac smiled, leaning against the conference table as she not so subtly crossed her arms, making sure to flash her left hand in Jenny's line of sight. "Oh, we're doing alright. Harm got promoted, as you can see."

"Ah, yes, I noticed. Captain Rabb, huh?" Jenny smirked, leaning over slightly to nudge Harm's shoulder. She froze about halfway there, her gaze focused on Mac's hand. "Sarah…is that what I think it is?"

Mac shrugged, barely concealing a wide smile. "I don't know, Jenny, what d'you think it is?"

Jenny gaped between the two for a few minutes. "You…her…ring…you're getting _married_?" She took Mac's wide smile as confirmation, lunging forward to hug the Marine tightly again. She took a step back after a moment, turning on Harm to whack him sharply in the shoulder. "It's about damn _time!"_

"Why is everyone saying that? Bud and Harriet wouldn't stop laughing about it when we told them, said it was about damn time we got together." Harm let out a small sigh. "I feel like I'm missing something."

Jenny rolled her eyes, motioning them both over to the couch. "Harm…look, I had you two pegged the first time you introduced me to Sarah, and I was dating you back then."

"Yeah, yeah…that seems to be what everyone's saying." Harm rolled his eyes back, settling onto the couch with Mac's hand twined with his. "Er…anyways, we were thinking, we'd like to invite you to the wedding. You've been a really great friend to both of us, and it'd mean a lot if you came."

Jenny moved around, getting drinks for the three of them before sitting. "Of course, I'd love to come! When are you getting married?"

Mac glanced over at Harm. "Well, see, that's kind of the problem. We've both been assigned posts on separate continents. I'm posted to San Diego, and Harm's supposed to go to London. We…well, we're still trying to decide what to do. We tried flipping a coin, but…well, apparently JAG is less than eager to lose one or both of us."

Jenny winced sympathetically. "Ah, I see. Well, SecNav is rather…well, I mean, he wouldn't have suggested you two for the positions if he didn't have faith in your abilities. I'm sure you'll be able t--"

The rest of her comment was cut off as the door to her office flew open, revealing J.J. standing there with a coffee cup gripped in his hands.

"Heya, Dad said to bring this up for you and to tell you he'd be here real late 'cause the case turned into a real Charlie Foxtrot, but I don' think I was sposta hear that last bit. What's Charlie Foxtrot…oh. I didn't know you had visitors. Sorry."

Mac very nearly choked on her drink at the mention of the vulgar military term out of the boy's mouth. She spluttered for a moment, hunched over laughing.

J.J. tilted his head inquisitively, frowning at Jenny. "What? Who's that?"

Jenny bit back a laugh, standing up and walking over to retrieve the coffee from him. "Thanks, Jake. This is Captain Harmon Rabb and Lieutenant Colonel Sarah MacKenzie, or Harm and Sarah. They're good friends of mine. Harm, Sarah, meet Jake."

J.J. promptly snapped to attention, touching his fingers to his forehead in a salute. "Pleased to meet you, sir, ma'am."

Harm hid a smile as he stood, nodding to J.J. "At ease, bud. Nice to meet you, Jake. You can call me Harm, no need to call me sir."

Mac had gained control of her laughter, standing to give J.J. a short salute back. "And you can call me Mac, Jake. No need for the ma'am."

J.J. shook their hands politely, ducking his head as Jenny mussed up his hair. "Er…you can call me J.J., then, if you want." He glanced up at Jenny again. "Abby said I could help out with the b'listics exam. Can I?"

"Did you ask your dad?"

"He said I had to ask you, he was goin' after a lead with Tim 'n Zee."

Jenny frowned for a minute, then sighed and nodded. "Alright, go."

J.J.'s face creased in a wide grin as he spun on the spot, yelling over his shoulder as he took off towards the elevator. "Bye! Nice to meet ya, Harm, Mac!"

Jenny took a sip of coffee as she turned back to her friends, raising her eyebrows at the looks they gave her. "What?"

"You never told me you had a kid." Mac decided to start the interrogation, leaving Harm to work as backup.

"What? Oh, no, Jake's not my son, he's just…oh, stop it, you two, I haven't been hiding a son from you, I promise." Jenny rolled her eyes at the mock wounded look Harm threw her way. "Harm…seriously, that look didn't work back then, what makes you think it'll work now? Jake's the son of one of my agents."

Mac raised her eyebrow. "And you make it a habit now to have the children of your agents bring you coffee?"

"I…no, just Jake, but that's not…" Jenny sighed, running a hand over her face. "Honestly, you two are blowing this out of proportion."

"Who's his dad? Obviously someone you know well, if he's comfortable enough asking you for permission to do things." Harm leaned against the conference table, a lazy smirk tugging at his lips. "Don't you think, Mac?"

"Okay, alright, fine. Remind me never to end up on the wrong side of your court cases." Jenny held her hands up in a placating manner. "Jake is Agent Gibbs' son."

"Wait…Agent Gibbs as in the agent who accused me of murder Agent Gibbs?" Harm sat forward slightly, staring at Jenny.

"Well, I wouldn't know, I was stationed in Europe at the time, but I would assume we're talking about the same person. Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs?"

"Yeah, that's him. I didn't know he had a son." Mac tilted her head to the side.

"It's…complicated, but, Jethro is Jake's dad, for all intents and purposes."

"That's a deflection if I ever heard one, Jenny." Mac smiled, shaking her head slightly. "So…I'm assuming there's something between you and Gibbs, if his son's comfortable enough to barge into your office and bring you coffee."

Jenny rolled her eyes, leaning back against her desk with a sigh. "We're good friends, have been for a while now." She shook her head at the look that passed between Harm and Mac. "That's all I'm going to say on the matter, so you might as well drop it."

"Alright, alright, whatever, Red." Harm grinned cheekily, winking at Jenny. "So you'll be able to come to the wedding? Agent Gibbs can come as your escort, if you want." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively, ducking the irritated swipe Jenny made at his head. "Kidding, sorry."

She rolled her eyes in response, shaking her head. "Can't see why you're marrying this goofball, Mac, but I'll be there."

Both women laughed at the wounded look that flashed across Harm's face. Mac kissed his cheek lightly, patting his arm. "Ah, that's why I love him, 'cause he's such a big goofball."

Jenny smirked. "Come on, I'll walk you two out."

After walking Harm and Mac to the elevator, she turned back towards the bullpen, where she encountered the whirlwind known as J.J. Gibbs. He ran headlong into her legs, glancing up once he stopped moving. "Oh. Hey, Jenny. Dad's back. He's with Ducky, I think he broke somthin'."

"What do you mean, broke something?" Jenny stared at J.J.

McGee appeared from the back entrance to the bullpen, the sleeve to his normally immaculate shirt torn, with a bandage on his arm. He also sported a rather livid bruise on his forehead and a cut lip. "Erm, Gibbs may have, uh…Ducky thinks he might've broken his arm, chasing after the suspect. He uh…fell, down a fire escape. Er…ma'am."

"He _what_?"

"Fell down a fire escape, ma'am. Or…well, more like, part of a fire escape." The probationary agent backtracked hurriedly at the look on Jenny's face. "Really, he's alright, ma'am, it was only a flight of stairs." McGee realized belatedly that he hadn't made the best choice in words as Jenny paled, already headed for the elevator. J.J. glanced over at Tim, shrugged, and then sprinted off after Jenny.

* * *

"M' f'ne, Duck, y' don' have to…OW, damn it! Stop that!" Jethro's tired voice rose to a yell as Jenny and J.J. entered autopsy, prompting Jenny to hurry forward to his side.

"How is he, Ducky?"

"Well, Jethro seemed to think it was a good idea to take a tumble down a fire escape. His arm isn't broken, as I previously thought, just badly bruised, though it does sound like he has a few cracked ribs, if his protests are anything to go by. He'll have a rather fetching bruise on his face for a while, and he's got a cut across the bridge of his nose, but other than that, he is quite the picture of health." The medical examiner was shutting his bag as he spoke, darting a hand out to hold Gibbs down when he made to get up.

"Ducky, I'm _fine_, let me up, will ya?" Jet winced as he shoved Ducky's arm away, swinging his legs around to sit up. "Where's my damn shirt?"

J.J. frowned, holding up what looked to be the remnants to a blue polo shirt. "Um…it's here, Dad, but…I don' think it'll help much as a shirt, really."

The 'whoosh' of the autopsy doors heralded the arrival of another person. "Gibbs, Gibbs, Gibbs! Timmy said you got hurt and…whoa, Gibbsman, talk about _built_! I mean, I always knew you were strong, 'cause there was that one time you dove on top of me 'cause someone shot up the lab and you were really heavy, and most of a person's weight is made up of their muscle mass, but I never knew you were that ripped…" Abby trailed off as Jenny turned around, raising her eyebrows. "Oh, sorry, Director, I didn't see you there."

J.J. burst out laughing, throwing an amused glance at Jet. "Your gym shirt is upstairs, Dad, I can go get that."

Gibbs winced at the thought of trying to get a t-shirt on. "Eh…tell ya what, Jake, go upstairs and get my dress shirt instead. I'm not sure I can handle a t-shirt right now." J.J. nodded and took off, heading into the elevator before Jet could finish his sentence.

Abby clumped forward in her combat boots, carefully engulfing Gibbs in a gentle hug. She stepped back after a moment, a cheesy grin on her face as she reached down, playfully rapping a fist against his abdomen. "Seriously, Gibbs, you're ripped!"

"Well, he practically mainlines caffeine, Abs, and only eats when he remembers, so it would make sense that he never gains any weight." Jenny laughed quietly as she leaned against an empty table, folding her arms.

Abby grinned, clumping over to sit on the table next to Jenny. "Whoa, Gibbs, that's a huge scar on your side. Where'd you get that?"

Jenny's lips twitched in a smirk. "That? He got that in Positano."

"Jen…" His voice lowered to a warning growl.

"Wait…is that why Tony said he heard you teasing Gibbs about 'having no stamina'? He mentioned something about Italy."

"JEN!" Gibbs looked embarrassed, his eyes flashing brightly. "What the hell?"

She merely shrugged and held her hands up. "Not my fault DiNozzo lives up to his name."

"Gibbs, c'mon, we could totally see the UST between you guys when the Director started here. Investigators, remember?" Abby scoffed at Jethro's irritated look, rolling her eyes.

J.J. re-appeared with a shirt in hand, whistling a nonsensical tune softly as he walked in. "Here's your shirt, Dad."

Jet took the shirt and struggled into it, sucking in a breath as the movement irritated his ribs. "Thanks, bud." He ignored Jenny's pointed glare, hopping down from the exam table as he buttoned up the shirt gingerly, making sure not to jar his abdomen. "C'mon. I've got a report to write, then we can head home."

"Huh uh." Jenny shook her head. "Duck can drive you home to get some rest and painkillers, and Jake can stay here with me. We'll drop by later with dinner so you can get some proper rest."

"Jen…"

"Don't start. This is an order, Agent Gibbs, and I expect you to follow it." Her tone brooked no argument. Ducky was already gingerly shunting Gibbs out of the room, silencing the protests coming from the special agent.

* * *

The sound of muffled snores issued from the living room of the Gibbs residence as J.J. and Jenny slipped in the front door. They walked into the room to see Jet sound asleep in the recliner, his mouth hanging open.

Jenny smiled, reaching forward to gently shake his shoulder. "Jethro…Jethro, wake up." She frowned as he slept on, oblivious to her efforts. "Jethro, wake up."

J.J. muffled a chuckle as his father slept on, giving only a rasping snore in response to Jenny's repeated efforts to rouse him. "Here, lemme do it."

"Don't see how you'll fare any better, but, suit yourself." She stepped back with a shrug.

He smirked, stepping up close to the head of the chair, where he lowered his face to his father's ear, whispering something Jenny couldn't quite make out. Jet's eyes snapped open and he shot up, turning a sharp glare on Jenny once he woke.

Gibbs quickly stood, ignoring Jenny's comment as he hurried over to the basement door, which he opened, sticking his head in to check something. He emerged a moment later looking relieved, raising his eyebrows at Jake. "Burnin' my boat, hm?"

Jenny glanced over at J.J., confused. He smirked slightly, giving an enigmatic shrug. "Rule Seven."

"Wait…what? What did you say to wake him up?"

The smirk widened. "Tol' him you were gonna burn his boat if he didn't get up."

"_What_?" Jenny gaped at J.J. "You told him…I…Jethro, I wasn't going to, honest."

Jet chuckled softly, walking over to slip his arms around her waist. "I know, Jen, I kinda figured, seeing as my boat's still there."

"I…but, why?"

"It's the easiest way to wake Dad up. Always has been. I 'member one time, Mu—"J.J. abruptly stopped in the middle of his sentence, his eyes flashing sadly.

"Sarah and Jake were spending the weekend here, they were trying to wake me up. Sar came running into my room yelling about the boat being on fire, said it was the fastest she'd ever seen me move. 'Course, the boat was fine, she was trying to get me out of bed, but…" Jet had picked up where Jake left off, smiling a little sadly. "Well…threats to the boat are always good convincers for me."

"I'll have to take note of that for the next time you piss off one of the sister agencies, Jethro." Jenny's green eyes flashed in amusement as she reached out, gently pushing the two into the kitchen. "Come on, let's eat. I'm starving."

* * *

"Jen…I'm not going undercover in a sex club."

Jenny let out a rather undignified snort of laughter, attempting to disguise it as a bout of coughing. "You aren't." She glanced up at him, amending her statement after his glare. "Well…it's not a _sex_ club, Jethro, it's more of a…fetish club, I suppose. Abby's been a few times."

His eyes flashed in alarm. "_WHAT?"_

She winced, realizing rather belatedly that that hadn't been the best excuse to give him. "It's harmless, Jethro, really. Besides, it's not just you; Tony and McGee will be with you. We're trying to lure out the killer. Don't you want that?"

"Jen…it's not…of course I wanna catch this dirtbag, but…oh, come on, it's a _fetish_ club! We're going to spend the entire night getting hit on, and you're completely fine with that so long as we catch this psycho?"

Jenny leaned back against her desk, folding her arms across her chest. "I can make this an order, Agent Gibbs, or you can do this voluntarily." She stepped forward, invading his personal space when his eyes flashed, silencing his protest with a finger. "And I'd advise you to follow orders here, Jethro, or you'll end up extremely _unsatisfied_ this weekend."

Gibbs bit back a groan at the suggestive tone of her voice, backing down in a heartbeat. Arguing with Jen was fun and all, but not when she threatened with things like _that_. "Fine, Jen, I'll do it."

Instantly she was all smiles again, moving back out of his space and leaning against her desk. "Excellent. We'll go ahead and get you all dressed for it, then."

Gibbs muttered something vague under his breath and sat down in one of her chairs to wait as she called the team and Abby up to her office, the full implications of her statement not hitting until Abby clunked in the room with a giant box of costumes. "Wait a minute…_dressed_?"

"Gibbs…we really gotta catch you up on the times. The Toxic Tango is a dress-and-play club. You come dressed up in the theme for the week, and you play." Abby patted his face patronizingly, already rifling through her box of clothes as Jenny filled Tony and McGee in. "This week's theme is Hollywood Blockbusters! So, Director, what are we dressing them as?"

Jenny turned away from her quiet conversation with Ziva, eyeing all three men rather critically. "Hm…"

Ziva circled Tony, looking him up and down with her head tilted to the side inquisitively. "I think Tony would work as a good James Bond, yes?"

Jenny frowned in response, tilting her head slightly. "Hm…Yeah, he kinda looks like the latest one...not Daniel Craig…Peirce Brosnan, that was his name. Okay, so, DiNozzo's set. Abby, get him prepped."

Tony was hauled over to one of the couches by an energetic Abby, while Jenny and Ziva regarded Gibbs and McGee. Jenny spoke up after a minute, glancing at Tim. "McGee could make a good Sam Spade, don't you think? Remember, we saw him in _The Maltese Falcon_ in Cairo that one weekend?"

Ziva tapped a finger against her lip in thought, nodding after a moment. "Okay, that is Tony and McGee all set, what about Gibbs?"

Abby was rummaging around in her box behind Gibbs, throwing a battered brown Fedora up, which landed precisely on Jethro's head.

"I have it! I mean, I know who Gibbs should dress as." Ziva gave a triumphant shout, stopping Abby's frantic searching.

"Who, Ziva?"

"I do not remember his name exactly…it was a state or something, but he went on these adventures all over the world. He carried a bullwhip, and he always wore a fedora…his last name was Jones, I believe. Remember, it was the first American movie you took me to, said nobody had lived until they saw it…what was his name…" She frowned, pinching the bridge of her nose in thought.

"Indiana Jones?" Jenny narrowed her eyes at Gibbs, as if she were trying to imagine him dressed as the action hero. "I like it, that works."

The three agents stood in her office ten minutes later in full costume. Tony wore a neatly pressed tuxedo, his usual SIG replaced by a Walther PPK as Bond's trademark look, and Abby had done something to his hair, slicking it into some special hairdo. McGee wore a black pinstriped suit and hat, with his gun hidden by a shoulder holster, looking like the suave, Humphrey Bogart version of Sam Spade.

Gibbs had taken a little more work, with Abby casting about for quite a few things for his outfit, namely a large bullwhip, which he pointedly avoided asking about. He was now dressed in a cream-colored work shirt, brown trousers, and a brown leather bomber jacket, with an old-fashioned holster at his waist holding a Colt 45 revolver, to 'stay in character', as Abby had put it. She looped the bullwhip on his belt and set the battered brown fedora on his head, taking a few steps back to look them over.

Jenny circled them once, grabbing a small canvas satchel out of Abby's box, slipping it over Jethro's shoulder and stepping back once more to survey. "There, perfect."

"I look like an idiot."

Abby and Jenny burst out laughing at Gibbs' petulant remark. Ziva's lips twitched in a smile, and she walked over to pat her boss' shoulder gently. "I do not think you look like an idiot, Gibbs."

"Oh, come on, Jethro, you look fine. Stop whining."

He subsided with a muffled grumble, leaning back against the conference table. "What do we have to do?"

"You'll enter the club separately, staggered about five minutes apart, with Ziva, Abby, and I watching through MTAC as backup. Our killer seems to have made it a habit to go after the older ones, so Tony and McGee will keep an eye on you. She's been slipping something in their drinks, so we'll keep watch until she buys you a drink and then we'll move in."

"Whoa…you never said anything about _me_ being the bait, Jen." Gibbs looked a little nervous.

"Hm. Must've slipped my mind."

"Jen…come on, last time we did this, last time I played bait…it didn't end well."

She scoffed, patting his shoulder patronizingly. "Oh, come on, just because Burley wouldn't stop teasing you doesn't mean it didn't end well, we caught the suspect."

"You only caught her after she…she…" He shifted unconsciously, crossing his legs uncomfortably.

"She what, Gibbsman?" Abby had been following the argument with interest, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

Jenny's eyes widened as she remembered. "Oh…I'd forgotten about that." She gave a sympathetic wince. "There's been no sign of…_that_ on any of the victims' autopsies, I hardly doubt this perp will do the same. And it wasn't all that bad, Jethro, just a little wax."

Gibbs flinched visibly, subconsciously covering himself. "A little….a _little_ wax? I couldn't walk properly for a week after that!"

Tony and McGee winced horribly, shifting to protect themselves. "Ouch, geez, Boss, that sounds awful. Er…maybe we shouldn't do this, huh?"

* * *

"_Jethro, can you hear me?"_

He let out a muffled grumble into his drink in response to Jenny's query through the earwig, turning around and leaning against the bar to survey the crowd, a motley assortment of movie characters dancing and drinking in the half-light. He met Tony's gaze across the room, and McGee leaned against the corner of the bar, both of his agents keeping a wary eye on the women who approached him. So far, he had garnered looks from Princess Leia and Lara Croft, but neither had offered him a drink.

"Well, well, well…Henry Jones, Junior." Jethro's survey of the room was interrupted as a curly haired brunette stepped up in front of him, her head tilted coquettishly. The gauzy white dress she wore was faintly reminiscent of Marion Ravenwood, and she leaned closer, making sure to brush up against him. "What are the chances I'd be meeting you here tonight?"

"Well, I dunno, Bright Eyes, we're both here, aren't we?" He tipped his hat to her with a roughish grin and a wink, slouching against the bar. "I'd say chances are lookin' pretty good."

"Fancy a little dance, Indy?" Marion leaned forward, tracing a manicured finger down his torso as she stole his drink, throwing it back in one gulp.

"Well, now that you've stolen my drink, I suppose I have to, hm?" Gibbs allowed himself to be pulled onto the dance floor, slipping his arms around the woman's waist.

They danced together for a few songs before Marion hooked her fingers in his belt loops, pulling him close to lean up and whisper in his ear. "I'm thirsty, Jones. Let's go get a drink."

"Whatever you say, Bright Eyes." He followed her obediently back to the bar, giving her a boyish grin when she turned back to look at him.

"What'll it be, Dr. Jones?" Marion gave him a sultry smile, tracing another manicured hand down his torso.

"Hey, I'll take anything you're havin', beautiful." He winked, leaning against the bar next to her. "Surprise me."

Marion smiled, turning her back to signal the bartender, and Jethro looked up, catching McGee's eye.

"_Just a minute longer, Jethro, we need to catch her in the act. Wait 'til she gives you the drink."_

Marion turned back to him with a wide smile, holding out a glass of scotch. "Here, handsome." She slipped onto the bar stool next to him, taking care to brush her chest against his arm.

McGee had moved as soon as she handed Gibbs the drink, leaving his corner post at the bar to walk up behind her. "Excuse me, miss?"

Marion blinked, turning around to face him. "What's up, Spadey?"

Tony had appeared by then, boxing her in by leaning against the bar on her other side. "You're under arrest for the murders of Gunnery Sergeant Eddie Braun and Staff Sergeant James Flynn."

Marion pouted coquettishly, turning to Jethro with a simpering look. "You're not going to let them do this to me, are you, Indy? Please, will you save me?"

Gibbs ignored her, motioning to McGee. "Cuff her." He reached over and grabbed her handbag, pulling out an empty vial. "Fixed my drink, huh? Guess we can add attempted murder of a Federal Agent to the charges. Get her outta here."

McGee had her cuffed and headed for the exit to the club, while Tony slipped the empty vial and Gibbs' untouched drink into evidence bags. "We got her, Boss."

* * *

By the time the three men had arrived back at NCIS and detained the suspect, their street clothes had inexplicably disappeared, forcing them to drive home in costume.

Jenny walked around and pinned Jethro against the Dodge in his driveway, pressing a heated kiss to his lips, pulling back with a grin after a long moment. "You know…J.J.'s staying over at Zach's tonight, we've got the house to ourselves." She slowly undid the first few buttons of his Indy shirt, teasing the skin on his chest with her nails. "I figured I'd reward you, for playing along so nicely today."

"Oh, really?" He followed her into the house, silencing Gambit with a bowl of dog food out on the back deck before he met her at the base of the stairs. "I did play nice, didn't I?"

Jenny gently pushed the leather jacket off of his shoulders and removed the empty holster from his belt, slipping three thin fingers under his waistband. "Oh, yes, you played very nice." She tilted the fedora back a little to kiss him again, maintaining the connection as she led him up stairs and into the bedroom.

Jethro rolled onto his back a while later, collapsing back onto the pillows with a long sigh. "Damn, Jen."

She curled up on her side, pillowing her head against his chest. "Hm?"

He flicked his finger against the fedora lying discarded on the bed next to her shoulder, a chuckle rumbling through his chest. "Hell, Jen, if you had an Indiana Jones fetish, all ya had to do was tell me."

Jenny lifted up her head, scowling at him for a minute before relenting with a sigh, laying her head against his chest again. He smirked, running his fingers up and down her spine. "So you'll reward me like this if I stop pissing off your sister agencies?"

"Mm...I suppose that seems like a fair trade." She shifted up to kiss his jawline, moving to straddle his torso.

He reached over to grab the fedora, settling it on his head as he gripped her waist, a mischievous grin on his lips. "So…about that Indy fetish…"

Jenny burst out laughing, leaning forward to hit his chest sharply. "Oh, just shut up and kiss me, you big dope."

Jet grinned wider and upset her weight, flipping them over. He lowered his mouth to hers, murmuring softly against her lips.

"Whatever you say, beautiful."

* * *

_**A/n: There you go, Chapter 6! I think this is more of a filler chapter than anything else.**_

**_Question: Shall I start fast-forwarding now? I figured I'd jump like 6 months ahead, closer to J.J.'s 6th birthday, and I've got a little surprise planned right about then._**

**_Review, tell me what you think!_**

**_-meg_**


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/n: Hey there, everybody, looks like you're getting quite a few things from me this week. Here's the long-awaited Chapter 7 for TGS!

* * *

**_

7. Birthday

"_Director Shepard, Officer David is here to see you. She says it's urgent."_

Jenny looked up, the creases of a frown appearing on her forehead. She reached over and hit the intercom. "Send her in, Cynthia."

Ziva slipped in the office door, looking exhausted. "Hello, Jenny."

Ah. So this was to be a personal visit, then. She took her glasses off, setting her pen down on top of the budget file she had been perusing. "There something wrong, Ziva?"

"The case…it has been extremely difficult." The Israeli sank down in one of the conference table chairs, running a hand over her face wearily, before meeting Jenny's gaze head-on. "Especially for Gibbs."

Jenny's frown deepened as she stood up from her desk, moving over to the chair next to Ziva, turning to face the liaison officer. If she remembered correctly, the MCRT's current case was a few days old. A Marine Staff Sergeant had been killed in a car crash, and a reconstruction of the accident site by Abby and McGee had proved that it most definitely was not an accident. She hadn't received an update since Ducky's autopsy report the day before stating that the Marine had been shot before the crash occurred. "You having difficulty finding leads?"

Ziva's face twisted in a wry smile. "We found a few leads, but not before the Staff Sergeant's daughter was killed in another accident. McGee and Abby found evidence of a stalker in Deborah Michaels' laptop. We believe this man thought if he eliminated Deborah's family, she would be available to date him. We caught him a few hours ago, and he confessed to everything, but…" Her gaze flickered up to meet Jenny's. "Gibbs is not taking this well. I believe he thinks that the girl's death is his fault, because of his experiences with Shannon and Kelly."

Jenny's eyes widened. "Oh no." She hadn't picked up on his mood; they had barely seen each other this week. She had been stuck in MTAC all week supervising overseas operations, and he had taken J.J. to Stillwater to visit Jack the last weekend they had free. "Where is he?"

"He yelled at Tony for playing around in the bullpen and then left for coffee." Ziva's mouth twisted in another wry smile as Jenny raised her eyebrows. "Tony was attempting to take some of the heat off of McGee. We have not seen Gibbs for a few hours now, and he is not answering his cell phone. Tony went to pick Jake up from school after the headmaster called. You were in MTAC."

"Jethro is missing, and you choose to wait until now to tell me?"

Ziva ignored the rebuke, crossing her arms over her chest. "McGee traced his cell phone; he is in Arlington Cemetery visiting Shannon and Kelly's graves." She paused for a moment, her eyes flashing sadly. "I just returned from there. It does not look like he is planning on leaving anytime soon. Jake is with Tony and McGee in the gym. We thought maybe you could go talk to Gibbs."

"Jesus…" She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose sharply. "He didn't say anything, and I haven't had a chance to look over the reports. I didn't even know. Could you three keep an eye on Jake? I think I probably better go find Jethro."

The Israeli nodded. "Tim told Jake that he was going to spend the night at his apartment, and we are going to take him to the movies after work, we figured that was the best way to distract him."

Jenny nodded distractedly, already gathering her things to leave. "Thank you, you guys are a big help. I'll take care of Gibbs; you guys take a long weekend. Just tell Tim to drop Jake off sometime tomorrow morning." She walked out of the office followed by Ziva, telling Cynthia that she would be gone for the rest of the day as they passed by.

* * *

A cold, dry wind wound its way through the graves and tombs in Arlington National Cemetery as Jenny and her detail pulled up. Melvin assisted her out of the car, walking a respectful distance behind her as she made her way along the footpaths, consulting a slip of paper in her hand.

She wound her way through the cemetery in silence, focused on finding the specific section where Jethro's deceased wife and daughter were interred, slowing and quieting her steps as she came up on the two graves.

Jethro sat on the grass directly in front of the graves, his shoulders hunched against the cold. He rested his elbows on his raised knees, holding his head in his hands. Jenny took his forgotten overcoat from Melvin, gently slipping it around his hunched shoulders, thanking the fact that she had chosen to wear slacks rather than a skirt today as she carefully crouched by his side. "Jethro?"

"I messed up, Jen." His voice was hoarse, barely hiding a choked back sob as he spoke. "I didn't even think that his wife might have a stalker. I didn't _think_…I made a stupid assumption, and now that little girl's dead, and that woman has to live the rest of her life without her husband and daughter...I…_God_, Jen, what sort of sick bastard even _does _that? Wh—why did he…" His voice cracked sharply at the end, cutting off his sentence. "I—I can't…I failed that little girl and her mother, j—just like Sh—Shan…Shannon and K-Kelly…"

Jenny bit her lip, sliding down to the ground next to him, her arm winding around his shoulders to tug his head down to rest against hers, murmuring softly into his ear. "It's alright, Jethro, just let it out…"

They sat there a while, his shoulders shaking with muffled sobs while Jenny rubbed his back with one hand, speaking softly into his hair. His sobs finally quieted and he seemed to collect himself, sitting up and drawing in a slightly shaky breath, scrubbing a hand across his eyes. He started to speak, clearing his throat after the first attempt and trying again. "I didn't mean for you to see me like this, Jen."

Her mouth quirked in a half smile as she continued to run her hand up and down his back slowly, the touch soothing. "It _is_ acceptable for you to show a little emotional attachment sometimes, Jethro, heaven knows we all have at one time or another. I'm sorry I didn't notice how the case was affecting you earlier than I did." She flashed him a small smile when he glanced over at her, his eyes suspiciously bright. "Tell me about them…tell me about Kelly." She gestured to the headstone, attempting to distract him. "What was she like?"

"Kel was…she was the cutest little girl you'd ever seen. Shan used to joke that she had me wrapped around her little finger from the day she was born. I always said she got Shannon's looks, but there was no denying she had my eyes." He smiled, tracing the thin silver bracelet on his left wrist. "She gave this to me, for my birthday right before I shipped out for the last tour. She always made me one of those little friendship bracelet thingys when I went off on tours, but they never lasted, so she said this one was sure not to fall off."

Jenny smiled, taking his hand and interlocking their fingers. "Looks like she was right, it never did fall off."

Jethro nodded, squeezing her hand lightly. They sat in silence, each of them content to stay in the company of the other for a while. He glanced up after a while, hearing someone approach the graves along the footpath to his right.

Gibbs stood, brushing off his trousers carefully as he helped Jenny up, careful to keep her behind him as the visitor appeared in sight, a young blonde haired woman wearing a Georgetown University hoodie and jeans. She slowed as she noticed the couple standing by the graves, her green eyes flashing in recognition. "Mister Gibbs?"

He blinked, surprised. "Yeah…who're you?"

The girl glanced at Kelly's grave and smiled faintly, jamming her hand in the pocket of her jeans. "Maddie Tyler. I was—am Kelly's best friend. We lived two…" The rest of her sentence was cut off as Jethro spoke up, his eyes flickering in recognition.

"Two houses down the street. Your dad was in my unit in Afghanistan. Jason Tyler, right? Staff Sergeant Tyler."

Maddie's smile faded slightly. "Yeah…he, ah, he died last year. They moved down to Florida after I started school here." She slipped her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie, gazing at Kelly's grave again, shrugging her shoulders self-consciously. "Once I found out they were buried here, I tried to come out a few times a year to visit, say hey to Kelly."

Gibbs blinked rapidly a few times, clearing his throat, his voice rough with emotion. "She would have liked that." He seemed to remember Jenny standing slightly behind him for the first time, coughing awkwardly as he moved to slip his arm around her waist. "Sorry, this is my gi—um, friend, Jen."

She smiled politely and stepped forward to shake Maddie's hand, nodding appreciatively at her hoodie. "Nice to meet you, Maddie. Good school you've got there, I graduated from there a while back."

Maddie's bright green eyes flickered over Jenny and then Melvin, still standing at attention ten yards away. "Oh, er, thanks. I…I was wondering, are you Jenny Shepard? The new Director of NCIS?"

"Ah, you caught me." Jenny laughed softly, shrugging one shoulder. "We, ah, try to keep that quiet around here, you know?"

"Of course, not a problem, ma'am. It's an honor to meet you, though, really. My friends will be jealous." Maddie's eyes flashed in amusement as she shook Jenny's hand again, the corner of her mouth turning up in a slight smile. "You've been the subject of some heated debates in my World Pol. Seminar."

Jenny smiled faintly, shrugging her shoulders depreciatingly. "Ah, I'm not that big of a deal, really."

"As if! You're the first female director of an armed federal agency, and the youngest by four years. You've opened up a ton of windows for women around the world, ma'am." Maddie shook her head vehemently at Jenny's protest. "You're hero to a lot of girls around here, showing we can do anything."

She flushed bright red, glancing off to the side. "Well, uh…glad to hear that I'm such a celebrity."

Maddie smiled, shaking Jenny's hand again as she glanced at her watch. "I, um, I have to get going, I've got to be into work in an hour." She stepped forward to give Jethro a gentle hug. "It was nice to see you again, Mr. Gibbs."

Gibbs smiled slightly, squeezing her shoulders as they stepped back. "Good to see you too, kiddo." He reached into his jacket, pulling out a card. "Here, uh, here's my card. You, uh, you keep in touch, maybe come over and visit sometime."

"Of course!" She slipped the card in her front pocket as she walked away, stopping suddenly and pulling something else out of her pocket. "Oh. Here. I was…I was going to leave this for Kelly, but…I think maybe it'll do better for you."

He reached out, taking a worn and wrinkled photograph from her outstretched hand. A young Kelly Gibbs and Maddie Tyler were sprawled across a younger looking Gibbs in fatigues, all three laughing at the camera. He smiled, swallowing hard as he looked back up at Maddie, tears shining in his eyes. "Thanks."

Maddie merely nodded in response, turning with a small wave as she left. "See you around, Gunny. Nice to meet you, Director."

Jenny smiled and waved as the college student walked off, wisely giving Gibbs a moment to collect himself. She turned back as she heard him clearing his throat, glancing back up at her with a watery smile.

Jet managed a half-laugh. "Damn, I've gone and ruined my rep all in one go, crying all over the place like some sap in a romance movie."

She shook her head sharply, taking his hands in hers and looking him straight in the eye. "Hey, now…none of that, Jethro. It is okay to cry, occasionally. I know this case got to you, and I understand that. You didn't ruin your 'rep' because I saw you crying." She grinned, moving over to slip her arm around his waist, nudging him in the ribs gently. "You're still the big badass Marine who's got a soft spot for redheads and kids."

"I do not have a _soft spot_ for redheads and kids!"

Jenny smirked and raised her eyebrow, staring him down calmly until he acknowledged her point with a grumble. "C'mon, we'll head back home and have a nice long night off, alright? Jake is with the team, having a fun night out at the movies, and he's staying at McGee's for the night."

They walked back to the car together, his hand resting gently on her lower back, the worn picture gripped in his other hand.

* * *

"Jethro, stop thinking." Her sleepy mumble roused him from his musings a few hours later. They both lay on the bed, her slim form wrapped around his with her head resting against his chest.

"How'd you…"

"Your shoulders are all tense. You only do that when you're thinking about something. Stop it." Jenny lifted her head off his chest, treating him with a sleepy glare.

Jet blew out a long sigh, shifting around enough to sit up. "I can't." He shifted again to accommodate her as she sat up, moving to rest her back against his chest.

"Okay…well, then, tell me what you're thinking. Talk."

He glanced down at his lap, reaching over to pick up her hand, where he sat and stared at the differences between his callused hands and her smooth ones. "Are you happy?"

"What?" Jenny glanced over at him sharply, her eyebrows contracting in a confused stare.

"Are you happy, with…this. Us." He lifted their joined hands, gesturing between the two of them.

"What the hell sort of question is that? Of course I'm happy, Jethro." She tilted her head at him, squeezing his hand lightly. "Why? Do you think I'm unhappy?"

"I just…I'm not the ideal guy for the first female Director of an armed Federal Agency to be dating. I mean, I've been divorced three times, I don't play politics well, I've never gotten along with the press, I've-." He was silenced by her hand coming up to cover his mouth.

"Jethro." She glared at him, the corners of her mouth turned down in a frown. "Shut. Up." She lifted up their joined hands to his chest, poking him sharply with both as she spoke. "I _am_ happy with you, and with Jake. I _am_ happy with the fact that you're not some ass-grabbing Senator from Capitol Hill. I. Am. Happy. Stop this ridiculous 'I'm not good enough for you' nonsense. I honestly don't give a damn _what_ anyone thinks of us. I'm happy, I assume you're happy, and Jake's happy. That's all that matters to me, Jethro. I'm done with all that five-point plan bull. This is where I want to be."

He blinked at her a few times, letting out a content sigh when she removed her hand from his mouth to kiss him, pulling back after a moment. "You really are happy with us?"

"_Yes, _Jethro. I'm happy here with you. I love _you_. All that other stuff, that takes second place to us, and Jake." Jenny squeezed his hand tightly, giving him a reassuring smile and another kiss. "Now would you stop worrying, please?"

He smiled tentatively back, pressing a gentle kiss to the back of her hand. "One more question."

She rolled her eyes but nodded, snuggling into his side further. "Alright, shoot."

"D'you want to get married?" He winced, realizing that he hadn't exactly phrased it well. "I—I mean, would you want to get married. For your job."

Jenny raised both eyebrows, sitting up and moving around so she sat facing him. "Is that was this is all about? This whole talk about us, and me being happy?"

Suddenly, he seemed to grow extremely interested with the patterns on the bedspread in his lap. "Erm…yeah, sort of."

"I see. So, you're afraid that our relationship is affecting my position as Director."

Jet fidgeted with a small hole in the sheets, still staring at his lap. "Well…yeah."

Jenny smiled, reaching out to tilt his face up to look at her. "It's not. SecNav already knows, and said as long as we keep it out of the office, he's fine with it."

His eyebrows raised, a surprised look flashing across his face. "I…what?"

"I told him, when I had to go through and change the next of kin on my file. Told him about Jake, too." She laughed softly at the surprise on his face. "Jethro…it is sweet that you worried enough about this to consider marriage all over again just for the sake of my job, but we're safe. It's okay. I'm not going to lose my position because we're dating."

"But what if I want to get married?" He winced sharply as he blurted the words out without thinking, snapping his mouth shut and quickly looking down again. "Er…just, uh, forget I said that."

"Do you?"

Jet lifted his head to meet her gaze, confusion flashing across his features again. "Do I what?"

"Do you want to marry me?" Jenny's eyes were serious as she stared at him, reaching out to take his hands in hers.

"I—I well…uh…yeah. But, I mean…I don't want you to feel like you have to, I just…" He slowed for a minute, cursing his sudden inability to string a normal sounding thought together. "I don't like sharing you with all those other ass-grabbing tight sphincters up on Capitol Hill. I want them to know you're mine." He winced sharply. "Er…n—not that I think of you as a possession or anything."

Jenny hid a growing smile as she watched him fumble for words, finally silencing him when she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. "So you do want to marry me."

He blinked, glancing down at their joined hands and then up to her eyes. "Yes." He released her hands suddenly, jumping out of bed. "Wait. I'm doing this all wrong." He walked over to the dresser, retrieving something from his top drawer, which he held behind his back as he returned to the side of the bed, going down on one knee and taking her hand in his. "I—I know I'm not good with words, and I know I can be a real bastard sometimes, but…I love you, Jenny, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want a family with you, Jake, the two point four kids, white picket fence, everything." He swallowed heavily, opening up the velvet box in his hands. "Jennifer Elizabeth Shepard, will you marry me?"

Jenny sucked in a sharp breath, staring at the platinum, emerald cut engagement ring nestled in the white box, bringing her free hand up to her mouth. She squeezed his hand tightly, reaching out shakily to take the ring before she lunged forward, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. "Yes!"

Jet relaxed visibly, his arms coming up to wrap around her waist, turning his head to press a kiss to her lips. "God, I love you, Jen." He settled back on his heels as she released her hold on his neck, reaching out to take the ring out of her hand to gently slip it on her finger.

She blinked rapidly, staring down at the platinum band on her hand, drawing another shaky breath as she looked at him again. "I—I thought you…I wasn't expe-oh, Jethro, this is perfect."

Jethro moved to sit on the bed next to her, brushing his fingers across her face worriedly. "I didn't mean to make you cry, Jenny."

"Happy tears, Jethro." Jenny laughed, leaning forward to kiss him again, staring at the ring sparkling on her finger resting on his shoulder.

* * *

Anthony D. Dinozzo, Jr., prided himself in being able to tell when people were happy because they got laid. Yeah, it was a little bit creepy, but, in his defense, most people were easy to read, especially after they'd well…you know.

He gave his boss an odd look as he, McGee, Ziva, and Abby dropped J.J. off Saturday morning after a fun night filled with movies, popcorn, and mind-rotting video games.

Gibbs appeared at the door wearing flannel pajama pants and nothing else, his normally ordered Marine-grade haircut ruffled and sticking up in quite a few places, as if someone had tangled their fingers in it and pulled, hard. He seemed supremely unconcerned with his state of undress in front of Abby and Ziva, and for some inexplicable reason, probably Jenny, he was actually _smiling_. Not his usual twitch of the lip, gone so fast you almost didn't see it smile, but a real, genuine smile, with teeth showing. Someone had gotten _laid._

He muttered a vague hello to the group, taking Jake's backpack as the almost six year-old scrambled into the house, already running up the stairs to find Jenny. He motioned the team into the house, turning away and heading for the kitchen.

Tony raised his eyebrows at McGee as he saw the scratches running across Gibbs' shoulders, giving Ziva and Abby an almost comical leer. "Dude…the bossman got _laid_ last night."

Abby muffled a giggle while McGee rolled his eyes at Ziva, a faint flush appearing across his cheeks. "I really don't wanna think about that, Tony."

"Don't want to think about what?" Jenny spoke up from the door to the living room, having followed Jake back downstairs.

The computer geek's face went almost fire-engine red as he quickly dropped his gaze away from Jenny's, mumbling as he found an interesting spot on the floor to stare at. "N—Nothing, Director, ma'am."

Jake snorted, disappearing into the kitchen to find his father. Jenny smirked slightly, settling down onto the couch with Abby and Ziva; her hands stuffed in the pockets of another pair of Gibbs' pajama pants, one of his old NIS t-shirts covering her torso. "How was Jake last night? He didn't cause any trouble, did he?"

"No, not at all! Jake's awesome!" Abby bounced in place in her seat, rambling on and on about the movie they viewed. Gibbs and Jake reappeared during the ramble, leaning against the doorway to the kitchen with identical smirks on their faces.

Gibbs finally cleared his throat, catching Abby's attention. "I invited you in because Jenny and I have something to tell you."

"Ohmigosh, you're pregnant!" Abby launched a bone-crushing attack hug on Jenny, squealing excitedly at the top of her voice.

"Abs! Abby! ABBY!" Jenny finally managed to successfully extricate herself from the Goth's formidable grip, standing up from the couch and moving over to stand in front of Gibbs. "I'm not pregnant."

"Oh." The forensic scientist frowned slightly, sitting back on the couch with her arms folded. "Well, then, what were you going to tell us? Is there something wrong? Oh no…you're not going to fire us all are you? That betting pool was totally Tony's idea, me and Timmy and Ziva didn't have anything to do with it, honest, Gibbs!"

"Abby, I believe Jenny and Gibbs are trying to tell us that they are getting married." Ziva's accented voice easily stopped Abby's tirade. The Israeli had been trying her best to conceal a knowing smile the whole time, her dark eyes twinkling as she inclined her head to her boss. "That is correct, yes?"

Gibbs rolled his eyes, nodding as he slipped his arms around Jenny's waist from behind, tugging her back against his chest. Jenny narrowed her eyes at the Mossad Officer, tilting her head back to glare mildly at Gibbs. "You had her size the ring, didn't you?"

He smirked in reply, shrugging one shoulder nonchalantly. "It was either that, or have Jake steal one of your rings when he went up to your office last week."

"So you all conspired against me, then."

"No…me, Jake, an' Ziver did." His answering grin was unrepentant as he pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek.

Abby, who had been frozen on the couch as she processed through the announcement, finally vaulted out of her seat with a wild squeal, running over to envelop both in a hug. "Ohmigosh, why didn't I think of that? I should have assumed that first, 'cause usually you get married before you have a baby, unless you're getting married beca—." She was silenced as Gibbs calmly reached out and covered her mouth with his hand, giving her a mild glare.

"Congratulations, boss, Director." Tim took advantage of the sudden silence to offer his congratulations, shaking Gibbs' hand and giving Jenny a brief hug. "We're really glad for you guys."

Ziva came next, chuckling softly at the slightly wounded look on Jenny's face, hugging them both. "I could not tell you anything, Jenny, Gibbs and Jake swore me to secrecy. I do expect to be a part of the wedding, though, my friend." She winked, reaching over to ruffle Jake's hair.

"Hey, Boss, I'm gonna be best man 'cause you like me best, right?" Tony flashed a wide grin, his face falling into a pout as Gibbs smirked and shook his head. "Oh…yeah, forgot about Ducky. Well, McGee and I can still be groomsmen, right? I mean, unless you have other friends."

"You'll all be a part of the wedding, Tony." Jenny smiled gently at Tony, accepting the hug he offered.

A half hour later, after much squealing and hugs from Abby, the team finally started to filter back out of the house, offering their congratulations one last time. J.J. had long since disappeared out back with the dog, quickly growing bored of the adult conversation.

"Here, Abs, I'll drop you home, it's on the way to my place anyways." Tony flashed a cheery smile at the Goth, ushering her out the front door and to his car.

"Go on, I'll be out in a minute." McGee waved Ziva off, murmuring something softly in Hebrew to the Israeli before turning back to Jenny and Gibbs.

Jenny noted the quiet exchange between the two agents, glancing up at Gibbs. "You need something, Tim?"

"I, uh…I just wanted to check something." He took a deep breath, focusing his gaze on Gibbs. "Rule Twelve…it's null and void now, right?"

Jethro stared at McGee impassively for a moment, finally tilting his head in a slight nod. "Keep it professional while we're at the office, Tim."

McGee merely nodded in response, his lips quirking up in a half smile. "Got it, Boss. Thanks. I'll uh, see you guys at J.J.'s party."

"Rule Twelve?" Jenny turned in his arms as McGee walked out the door, frowning up at her fiancée. "I'm assuming this isn't the same rule I remember, because it was never assume anything when I worked with you."

He shook his head briefly, lifting a shoulder in a half shrug. "I changed it after Paris. 'Never date a coworker.' It's irrelevant now, you came back." He cringed slightly. "Uh…in hindsight, not one of my better ideas, but I…"

Jenny smiled faintly, reaching up to cover his mouth. "Jethro, I get it. I hurt you when I left, and you naturally didn't want to see any of your team go the same way. It's alright."

He smiled back after a moment, kissing the center of her palm gently.

"Whether it was a good plan or not, I'm coming up with a new rule."

* * *

Jake grinned at the large Batman ice cream cake sitting on the kitchen table, waiting for the team and Jackson to finish singing, giggling at Tony and Abby's slightly goofy dancing.

"Okay, Jake, make a wish." Jet slipped an arm around his son's shoulders, smiling happily.

J.J.'s forehead furrowed in concentration as he thought up a wish, leaning forward to blow the six candles out with a huge puff of air.

"Awesome! What'd ya wish for, Jake?" Tony finished his comical dancing, rushing up to the six year old's side.

"I'm not sposta tell, 'Tonio, or it won't come true." He rolled his eyes in response, watching eagerly as Jenny cut the cake. "I want the piece with my name on it. No…wait, I want the piece with Batman on it."

Jenny chuckled, deftly slicing the cake up. "How about you have the one with your name now, and we'll save the Batman piece for breakfast tomorrow?"

"Okie dokes." He took the offered piece of cake, digging in happily. "Can we do presents now? You said we could do presents after the cake."

"Let everyone get some cake first, and then you can open them, alright, J?"

J.J. fidgeted in his seat as he waited patiently for the cake to be served, jumping up as soon as Jenny handed the last plate over to Ducky. "Okay, everyone's got cake, let's go open presents now." He led the charge into the living room, skidding to a stop by the pile of presents sitting near the couch.

"Alright Jake, slow down, the presents aren't gonna go anywhere." Jenny laughed softly, sitting on the couch next to him. "Here, you sit there, and I'll pass them along to you."

He settled down in the center of the room, which soon turned into a war zone of torn wrapping paper, with the new presents strewn around: Nationals Baseball tickets and a ballcap from Tim, a package set of superhero movies from Tony, a Team USA soccer jersey and a new ball from Ziva, iPod and a $30 gift card from Abby, a box set of books from Ducky, and a few "special" presents from Jenny and Jet to be opened later.

"Pretty good haul, J." Jet leaned against the doorway to the kitchen, eyeing the large mound of presents lying around his son.

"Yeah! This is even better than Christmas! Thanks, everybody!" J.J. doled out a round of tight hugs for everyone at the party, thanking them profusely for the presents.

* * *

He relaxed back on the floor with Gambit a while later, watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a large bowl of popcorn in his lap. "Dad?"

Gibbs looked up from his place on the couch. Jenny had disappeared upstairs with a stack of reports to review, insisting that she'd watch the movie some other time. "Hm?"

"Can I tell you my wish?"

"Why do ya wanna do that, Jake?"

"'Cause you're the only one who can make it happen." J.J. stared fixedly at the TV, his neck and ears flushing red.

"Okay…" Jet glanced sideways at him, looking confused.

Jake took a deep breath, rolling over on his back to face him, lacing his fingers behind his head. "D'you think mum'll be mad if I ask for a new mom? I wanna be in a real family, with you 'an Jenny 'an maybe some brothers and sisters, but…I don't wanna make mum sad."

"You…you want Jen to be your mom?" Jet blinked, surprised. He knew J.J. looked up to Jenny and Ziva as sort of surrogate Aunts, but he never thought J.J. would look at Jen like a mother.

"I, well…yeah. B—But, only if she wants to. I—I know I'm not her real son, or anything, but…all the other kids at school have a mom 'an a dad, I want that too."

Both Gibbs boys were quieted as a soft voice spoke up from the doorway. "I'd love to be your mother, Jake, if that's what you want." Jenny leaned against the doorjamb, a small tumbler of bourbon gripped in her hands.

"Really?" J.J. stood from his position on the floor, running over to wrap his arms tightly around her waist. "You'll really do it?"

Jenny laughed softly, crouching down to his level. "Jake, if you want, then I'd be honored to be able to call you my son."

_**A/n: Well, there you go. I've already started work on Ch. 8, which is set a few weeks after this, and there will be a couple more surprises coming. **_

_**Review, tell me what you think! Please read my new story, Why I Am, also. It's a Jibbs AU, less team-oriented.**_

_**-meg**_


	8. Chapter 8

_**A/n: Yay for college starting...not. It seems my muse absolutely hates me and chooses the first week of my sophomore year of college to bombard me with story ideas. **_

_**Gah. Such is life. Here's Chapter 8! Enjoy!

* * *

**_

8. Suspicions and Surprises

Jake Gibbs paused in his transit through the living room of the Gibbs home, his slate-grey eyes fixing on the slumped form of his father on the couch. This was the fifth straight night in a row Dad had slept on the couch, and to be honest, J.J. Gibbs was worried. He frowned, his eyebrows contracting together as he noted that his father still wore his clothes from the previous day, signaling that Jet hadn't even been allowed upstairs.

_Something_ was up.

Jake let out a low sigh, walking over to the couch and tapping Jet's ankle, years of practice with waking the Marine cautioning him from doing the customary shoulder tap. "Dad?"

Jethro Gibbs grunted, his head lifting off the couch. "Mmm?"

"It's almost 0600, Dad." J.J. watched as Jet sat up slowly, wincing as his neck and back sounded off a ripple of pops.

Gibbs gave a noncommittal grunt in reply, ignoring his disheveled hair and three days worth of beard as he padded upstairs to change, his cerulean eyes taking in the empty bed without so much as a second glance. He jerked a grey polo shirt over his torso as he walked back downstairs, toeing on a pair of shoes. "J, you ready to go? I've gotta get in to work!"

J.J. appeared in the kitchen doorway, his bag slung over his shoulder. "Yeah, I'm ready. Am I goin' with you today? Jenny wasn't here when I woke up."

"I dunno, buddy, you'll stay with us unless we get a case, okay?" Jet hid the flash of guilt that crossed his face at the mention of Jenny, ushering his son out the door and to his car.

* * *

Ziva David had an innate talent with observing people, picking out the nuances in their behavior that suggested stress or bad times. Her amber eyes tracked the movements of her boss as he made his way slowly into the bullpen, followed closely by J.J.

Gibbs' normally straight posture was slightly slumped, his hair less ordered than usual, a hastily trimmed beard shading his jaw and upper lip. He looked physically exhausted as he sank into the chair behind his desk with a long sigh, rubbing a hand over his face.

J.J. settled into the unoccupied desk next to Jet's, pulling a pack of Pop Tarts and his Game Boy out. He glanced up as a shadow fell across his screen, meeting Ziva's eyes with a quizzical look. Ziva jerked her head towards the elevator, J.J. following after a moment.

"Jake…is there something wrong with Gibbs?"

He sighed, lifting his left shoulder in a half shrug. "Dunno, Zee. He's been sleepin' on the couch all week, though, and he gets home after Jenny goes to bed. She leaves before either of us wake up, and the one time they did talk, she ended up yellin' at him. I dunno what's goin' on, but I don't like it."

Ziva nodded, leaning back against the elevator wall with a heavy sigh. "Yes, I noticed Jenny has been quite a bit more…emotional than is usual for her."

Jake mirrored her casual posture against the wall, his eyebrows contracting in a frown. "It's like she gets upset over the weirdest things. She cried yesterday 'cause me and 'Nomi made chocolate chip cookies after school."

Ziva frowned, thinking. "Hm. Well, let me talk to Jenny and see what I can find out." Her cell phone rang, cutting through the silence in the elevator. "David. Yes, Gibbs, I just took Jake to get a soda, we will be back upstairs momentarily."

They both exited the elevator moments later, a Coke can in J.J.'s right hand. His face fell slightly at seeing McGee and Tony standing at the entrance with their gear. "You got a case, didn't you?"

Jet sighed, nodding. "Yeah, I'm sorry, J. Look, why don't you head down to Abby's lab 'til we get back? You don't have to go to Child Care if you don't want."

* * *

"Looks like we're late to the party."

"Assume a 100 meter blast radius from the sandtrap." Gibbs ignored Tony's muttered comment as they walked to the scene, taking in the uniforms of Army CID with a barely concealed eye-roll.

"It's called a bunker, Boss, not a sand trap." Tony flinched at Gibbs' glare, quickly setting down his pack to begin searching the scene. "Blast radius, 100 meters, got it Boss! Probie, you got the woods, I got the far side."

"Uhhh…" The team turned to look at their most junior member, frowning.

"What, MaGee?"

"Poison ivy, Boss. I just look at the stuff and I break out."

Gibbs shrugged, already turning around again. "Don't look." He crouched by the edge of the bunker, staring down at the blackened sand.

"Agent Gibbs?" He turned, meeting the hazel eyes of a middling height blonde woman in Army fatigues. "Lt. Col. Hollis Mann. I believe your Director cal-."

"She did." He cut her off mid sentence, gesturing to introduce Ziva. "Officer Ziv-."

"Ziva David, yes, I know. Army Criminal Investigative Division has excellent intel." Mann set her hands on her hips, looking up at Gibbs.

"Good, you can use it to support our investigation." Gibbs had already turned to walk away, Col. Mann catching up after a few steps.

"Our joint investigation, with Army in the lead. This isn't the Navy-Army club."

"Yeah?" Gibbs stopped, pointing at the body. "That is a dead Marine in the Army-Navy club."

Mann sighed, following him back to the lip of the bunker. "I had E.O.D. sweep the rest of the sand-trap."

"Bunkers."

"Excuse me?"

"Call 'em bunkers, not sand traps." He turned to face her again as he spoke, eyeing Tony searching a garbage can in the distance warily.

Mann rolled her eyes, moving on with her findings. "The Col's son said he saw something like a spiderweb in the bunker."

"Trip wire?" Ziva crouched on the ground near them, looking at the blast site.

"Possibly. There's not much to go on with this one." She turned in a slow circle, surveying the golf course. "Course, we've got a lot of land to cover."

"Eighteen holes on a golf course."

"Yep. You wanna divide them up?"

"Sure. We'll take this one, you take the other seventeen."

Mann smiled faintly, setting her hands on her hips again. "You're not taking away my crime scene. Though, if you ask nicely, we'll give you the body."

"Well, I don't have to ask, seeing as my ME got here first." Gibbs smirked, folding his arms across his chest.

Mann sighed, mirroring his posture. "Okay. If this is going to be a pissing match, you better bring your umbrella."

Tony's jubilant voice cut through the tension in the air. "O-ho! Got something, Boss!" He ran up, ducking under the crime scene tape easily.

"Whaddaya got, DiNozzo?"

"Found this, off the next tee. Was outside the blast radius, wind must've carried it. Looks like part of a detonator." Tony held up the burnt piece of plastic.

Mann looked peeved, her hands snapping back to her hips. "I checked the neighboring tees myself."

"Well…maybe you shoulda checked the trashcans. Looks like a hole in one, Boss." Tony smirked at the Col., dropping the detonator in the evidence bag Gibbs held out.

* * *

"Is it just me, or did SecDef seem nervous?"

Jet followed Jenny out of MTAC, running a tired hand over his face. "Probably has a tee time tomorrow." He turned to look at her. "You were gone before Jake and I woke up this morning."

Jenny shrugged, turning to stare down at the bullpen. "Something came up. What's she like?" There was a slight undercurrent of something in her voice, but he couldn't place it.

Jet rolled his eyes, glancing over at her.

"I just meant, is she up to the job?"

"I dunno, Jen, I'll let you know." He glanced down as his phone rang. "Gibbs."

"Hey boss, DiNozzo here. The CID lady stole Jake's desk, and she's trying to steal credit fo-." Tony whispered into the phone, unaware that his bosses were standing on the catwalk behind him.

Jet rolled his eyes, taking the phone away from his ear. "Hey, DiNozzo!"

Tony looked up, and then turned around. "Heh…ha, ha…hey, Boss, I didn't see…I thought you were still…I thought you were still in MTAC."

"Whaddaya want, DiNozzo?"

"Oh. We uh, we fo-."

Lt. Col. Mann cut him off, raising her voice to be heard. "We just found an unaccounted for vehicle from the Army-Navy club."

Jenny watched as Jethro made his way down the stairs, already barking orders to his team. She didn't notice the boy at her side until he spoke up. "I don't like her."

"Jesus, Jake, you scared me."

Jake merely shrugged, glaring down at the Army Colonel as she picked up her gear from his desk. "She stole my desk, and she keeps checking Dad out and it's creepy."

"Jake…we're only working with CID because we have to. It's not like she's a permanent member of the team."

"Yeah, I guess…" He trailed off as they watched the joint team head to the elevator. "Jenny…why'd you leave so early this morning?"

"Something came up, I got called in early." Jenny glanced down at her watch. "Jake, I really have to go, I've got a meeting in MTAC in five. Why don't you head down to Child Care?"

She was already turning away, missing the flash of hurt that crossed Jake's face before her trudged downstairs, his thin shoulders slumped.

* * *

"Agent Gibbs?" Gibbs looked up from pouring paint into a small jar to the top of the basement steps, seeing Col. Mann standing dressed in civilian clothes. J.J. sat hidden under the stairs, an X-Men comic book in his hands.

"I—I've been ringing your bell for three minutes."

"Hm. Yeah, been meaning to fix that." Jet met Jake's eyes with a smirk as he sat down behind the Kelly.

"Well, then the door was unlocked, so…" She made her way down stairs.

"So, this would be trespassing, not breaking and entering."

"Uh huh." Mann made it down the last few steps, moving closer to read the name on the back of the boat, not seeing Jake's hiding spot yet. "Kelly?"

Gibbs' face closed down, irritated, as he turned around to glare at her. "There a reason you broke into my house?"

Mann stood her ground through the glare, flicking her hair to the side. "This is a joint investigation, I thought maybe we could share some information."

Jet sat back after a minute, suppressing a sigh. "You want a soda?"

"Soda?"

He leaned back slightly, pointing to the mini-fridge in the corner.

"Sure." She removed her jacket, making her way over to the fridge. "I got the results back on the swabs from the Toyota. Traces of diesel fuel and uh, fertilizer." She popped the top off of the beer with a rag, turning back, noticing Jake for the first time. "I wasn't aware you already had a visitor."

"This is Jake." Jet didn't elaborate anymore, returning to his painting work quietly. J.J. hid a smirk as he watched Col. Mann discreetly check out Jet's back as he stood to adjust his paintbrush.

"Hello, Jake. I'm Hollis, Hollis Mann."

Jake raised a vague hand in greeting, moving out from his hiding spot to sit on a stool near the boat.

Col. Mann seemed extremely uncomfortable and unsure of how to respond to the situation. "So, um…that's what we found."

"Hm." Gibbs studiously worked on the first "L" in Kelly, his head bent to survey his work. "Well, the car belonged to the greenskeeper, so…"

"It's a dead end." Mann sighed, taking the free stool next to Jake. "Jake…the file I got from CID doesn't mention…"

"Jake is my son." Jet turned around and leaned against the bottom stair banister.

"Oh. Right. Well, if that's um, all we have, then I'll just be going." Col. Man stood and quickly retrieved her jacket, heading up the stairs quickly.

Both Gibbs men leaned against the boat, smirking as they heard the door close. "Well, that was awkward."

"Dad, she was looking at your butt."

"I know…I figured I'd get more info out of her if she's allowed to flirt." They trudged upstairs, turning off the lights in the house as they went.

Neither Hollis Mann nor Jet and Jake noticed Jenny's black Mercedes Benz drive away after Mann's car, the driver visibly upset.

* * *

"All I've got is 300 wasted man hours. We're looking in the wrong direction."

Gibbs stood in MTAC in front of Jenny the next morning, his arms folded across his chest.

"Hm. Well, I might be able to help with that. Danielle, pull up that file from the CIA, please."

Jet turned to look as three pictures flashed up on the MTAC screen. "Why are we just now hearing about this?"

"Probably the same reason we didn't hear about those flight lessons 'til after 9/11." Jenny shrugged. "I've already notified _Colonel_ Mann, CID will meet you at the scene." Her face twisted minutely at the mention of the Army Colonel, masking her irritation quickly. "Now, go. I have work to do, Agent Gibbs, as do you." She turned her back on him, a clear dismissal.

* * *

"Oh, I'm a cheap date."

"Date?"

"It's a figure of speech, Gunny." Jenny stood in the back stairwell, listening to the voices clearly broadcast to her from the bullpen, her blood boiling.

"So, I got the food, you solve the case?"

"Almost, until you broke my concentration."

"That easy to break, huh?"

"When I'm hungry."

Was it just her imagination, or did the Lt. Col.'s voice take on a seductive undertone with that comment? Jenny huffed, glaring at the sparkling platinum ring on her finger. "Bastard." She disappeared back upstairs to her office, her eyes red.

* * *

"Do you know how many packages of Ring Dings are sold a day, Gibbs?" Abby and Jake stood in front of the plasma in her lab, watching the footage from Sharif's convenience store.

"Abs, the customers?"

"The customers! They're talking about everything from the weather to hemorrhoid cream, to…"

"Ding Dongs, the price of a twelve pack of beer, how much gas is…" Jake joined in with Abby's list, spinning around in his computer chair.

"There's no audio, how do you two know…?" Col. Mann stepped up closer to the plasma, her brow furrowed.

Jake smirked and tapped his lips, signing something rapidly with his hands.

"Ah, you read lips."

Abby raised her eyebrows, turning around to sign something to Gibbs, who replied back in kind.

"Alright, you guys wanna keep talking about me, or get back to the case?"

"Um, after watching like twelve hours of the worst reality TV ever, we've narrowed it down to one suspect, this guy." She clicked the remote, freezing the image on screen. "He refers to himself as Abraham."

"He didn't mention the golf course, but he said somethin' about the Day of Judgment is coming." J.J. stopped his spinning chair long enough to grin up at his father. "Sounds like Magneto from X-Men."

"Yeah, Jake, well, this Abraham guy is a lot worse than Magneto. You did a good job, bud."

* * *

Jake slipped into MTAC behind a harried looking tech, hiding in the back row of seats. Jenny was in fine form, shouting orders into her headset as they waited for Army CID to send the feed of the arrest of Abraham over.

"Going live in three, Director."

Jenny spun to face the screen, watching as Team Gibbs and Col. Mann hurried through Georgetown Promenade, slipping earwigs into their ears. "You read me, Tango One?"

"Loud and clear, Director." Jet's gruff tones resounded out of the speakers in MTAC. "Clear the civilians, quietly."

They heard radio chatter for the next few seconds, Col. Mann giving orders to her team rapidly. "There, Abraham, on the bench."

The cameras zoomed in on the man from the convenience store, sitting on a bench on his own.

"If he sees us clear the civilians, he might detonate." Ziva's accented tones rang through the speakers.

"If there's a trip wire, anyone could detonate."

"He used a cell phone for the second bomb." Tony hurried after the team on camera.

"Trip wire, cell phone, who knows." Gibbs was already removing his jacket.

"Dead man switch?" Tony let out a sigh as Gibbs jerked his other arm out of the jacket. "Or not…"

"Agent Gibbs, get back to your team, I repeat, get back to your team, that is an order." Jenny paced in front of the screen, watching as Gibbs ignored, her, removing the earwig from his head, his last transmission relaying through.

"DiNozzo, you keep your ears on me." He set his jacket down, picking up another man's coat from a bench.

The rest of the team ducked down near a vendor, Col. Mann's voice issuing through the speakers. "What the hell is he doing?"

Tony sighed, by now ignoring the screaming Jenny in his earwig. "What he always does."

"Three marriages? Negotiation's probably not his thing." They watched as Jet 'borrowed' a man's hat, picking up a discarded newspaper from the bench next to Abraham.

Tony snorted. "Eh…you'd be surprised."

Jet's voice abruptly came through the speakers again, loud and clear. "Cell's not the detonator."

He walked over to Abraham, eyeing the cell phone in his hands. "My son, Jake, he plays that same game. What's your name?"

"Abraham…" The suspect's voice came, garbled through the mic.

"Hey, Abraham, my name's Jethro." Jet reached out to shake his hand, revealing a cable strapped to Abraham's wrist.

"Jethro?"

"That's the name they gave me." Gibbs took a seat on the bench next to Abraham, ignoring the crowd of bystanders held back by the police a ways away.

"That means Friend of God, the father in law of Moses! He walked with the Israelites, when God parted the Red Sea!" Abraham leaned towards Gibbs, still clutching his backpack. "You know why God parted the Red Sea?"

"No."

"To show the people that sea creatures were totally dependent on God's will."

"What is he talking about?" McGee's voice came over the comm, sounding confused.

"I'd say this guy's a few puppies short of a pet shop." Tony chimed in next, shaking his head.

"Most suicide bombers are." Ziva spoke calmly, keeping a wary eye on her boss.

Gibbs shifted closer to Abraham, keeping his arm casually leaned against the back of the bench. "Abraham, can I ask you a question?" He waited for Abraham's nod, continuing. "You think it's okay for someone to hurt people?"

"No, Jethro!' Abraham shook his head vehemently.

"Yeah, I didn't think so." Jet leaned closer, shaking his head slightly. "What are you doin' here, Abraham?"

Abraham glanced around, looking confused. "I'm waitin' for my friend. He's gonna take me to dinner."

Gibbs nodded, pointing at the backpack. "The friend give you the backpack?"

"Mmmhmm. 'Bout an hour ago, said this is so I don't lose it." Abraham gestured to the cable around his wrist.

"What's this friend's name?"

"Sharif."

"So who's laying in autopsy, then?" Tony sounded confused.

Abraham looked around again, frowning. "He was sposta' meet me here at 3 o'clock!"

"ZIVA!" Gibbs was already up and calling her over, crouching in front of Abraham. "Abraham, is it alright if we take a look in your backpack?"

Abraham nodded calmly, staring around as the team surrounded him.

"E.O.D.'s still on their way, Boss." Tony and the others leaned over Abraham in the camera, blocking Jenny's view of the proceedings.

"We're out of time." Col. Mann sounded harried and afraid.

"You still want me to diffuse it, 'cause before you said you'd kick my ass if-." Ziva seemed unruffled, a muted beeping coming through the background of her mic.

"DO IT!" Gibbs moved over to make room for Ziva. "The rest of you get out of here." He waved them away, McGee giving him a defiant look before crouching by Ziva's side, Tony following.

"Thirty seconds." McGee's voice rose in intensity.

"Tony, army knife." Ziva reached a hand over her shoulder, taking the knife Tony provided.

Abraham turned to McGee. "What's your name?"

"Uh, Tim."

"It means he-who-is-about-to-wet-his-pants." Tony hovered over Ziva's shoulder, his cutting sarcasm evidence of his mood.

Ziva clipped the wire after a few tense seconds, letting out a low sigh.

"Wh—why is he gonna wet his pants?"

Ziva's accented chuckle rang out of the speakers. Col. Mann approached Gibbs, who paced a few yards away, looking around warily. "He's here."

"No…not anymore."

* * *

"You _self-serving_, lying, cheating BASTARD!" Jenny confronted Gibbs as he re-entered the bullpen, ignoring the shocked looks from the team and Col. Mann. "You don't follow orders, you're never home, you had _her_ over for dinner twice this week, you-you…" A sharp slap resounded through the bullpen, Gibbs rocking back a few steps as Jenny flung something small and flashy on the ground by his feet, storming out of the bullpen and up the stairs. He put a hand up to his lip, gingerly feeling the cut there.

"Here, Gibbs, take these." Ziva handed him a few tissues, pressing one against his lip. "You should probably see Ducky, that looks bad."

"What was that?" Col. Mann stood next to McGee's desk, thoroughly confused. Gibbs shook his head, brushing past her to head for Autopsy. She looked over at McGee, then Tony, her gaze finally settling on Ziva. "I'm serious, am I missing something here?"

Tony stared shellshocked at the ring on the ground. "I—McGee?"

"I dunno, Tony. Jake said she's been making him sleep on the couch all week, and they only time they do talk, she's started arguments over the weirdest things."

"What is going on?" Mann repeated her previous question, crossing her arms.

"I, uh…I think Director Shepard might uh, might think that Gibbs is cheating on her with you. Er…ma'am…uh, Lt. Colonel."

"What?" Mann glanced at the ring on the floor, comprehension dawning. "Oh, my. They're engaged? I—I didn't…his file didn't mention…oh, no."

"Have been for three weeks now. Jenny was gonna adopt me, but now she's bein' all crazy." J.J. spoke up from his desk, staring at the floor. "I don't know how to fix it."

"This is all just a big misunderstanding. I need to go explain." Lt. Col. Mann straightened her shoulders and headed up the stairs to the Director's office, leaving the team and Jake behind.

* * *

"Duck, I need a favor."

"Besides me fixing up this cut on your lip?"

Jet rolled his eyes, leaning back on his hands on the autopsy table. "I think Jenny's pregnant."

"What?" The ME stepped back, surprised. "You're kidding me."

"It's the only thing that makes sense, Duck. She's been more emotional than usual lately, she won't even let me in the damn bedroom, and she loses her temper at the drop of a hat. I checked her trashcan, it's not her time of the month. I don't know what else it could be."

* * *

"Director Shepard?" Lt. Col. Hollis Mann knocked quietly on the door. "Ma'am?"

"Go away!" Something that sounded mysteriously like a high heel hit the other side of the door loudly.

"Ma'am, you have this all wrong, I'd like a chance to explain, please." She interpreted the silence on the other side of the door as a signal to go ahead, holding up both hands cautiously as she entered.

"What do you want?" Jenny Shepard looked livid, her eyes red. She folded her arms across her chest aggressively.

"Ma'am, I don't know what you saw or heard, but it's not what you think."

"Oh, really? So you leaving Jethro's house at 2130 hours the other day was just innocent? Your dinner in the bullpen last night was nothing?"

"That's correct, ma'am, you can even ask Agent Gibbs' son about the night at his house, I dropped by to go over the case, nothing more, ma'am." Lt. Col. Mann stared solidly at the wall just above Jenny's head, her posture straight. "I apologize if my behavior made you think otherwise."

Jenny stared at her for a solid minute, her green eyes wary. "You're being completely honest with me."

"I don't make a habit of lying, Director Shepard."

She sat back after a long minute, looking devastated. "What have I done?"

Mann relaxed her posture, glancing down to the floor a minute. "Agent Gibbs is downstairs with Dr. Mallard, ma'am."

Jenny muttered a reply, already flying by on her way out the door.

* * *

"Look, I'm not saying you're wrong, it is entirely possible that she might be, Jethro, but how in God's name do you propose I test that?"

"Hell, I dunno, tell her she needs her medical files updated! She won't talk to me, dammit, so there's no way I can ask!"

Jenny slowed her headlong rush out of the elevator outside Autopsy, hearing the slightly raised voices of Ducky and Jethro issuing through the closed doors.

She took a deep breath, and walked through the doors. "Jethro…" She stopped dead as she noticed the cut on his lip. "Oh, no…Jethro, I'm so so-."

"Don't say it, Jen." Jet levered himself off of the table, walking over to her. "Sign of weakness."

"I split your lip open, and assumed you were cheating because I'm a helpless bag of emotions, Jethro. You better damn well let me apologize for it." Jenny blinked back a few tears, winding her arms around his waist. "I don't even know what's come over me, I just…I got so angry."

He smiled faintly, wrapping his own arms around her shoulders, settling his chin atop her head. "It's alright, Jen." He took a step back after a minute, smiling down at her. "And, as to why you've been so emotional, I've got a theory."

Jenny raised her eyebrows, smiling back. "Oh?"

"Jethro and I both think this is the most likely cause of your…ah, mood swings, Jennifer. All I need to verify is a simple blood test."

The smile faltered slightly. "I—I don't understand. What are you talking about?"

Jethro took a deep breath, resting his hands on her upper arms. "Jenny…I think you're pregnant, babe."

"I'm what? No—I—I can't…I haven't missed…oh." Jenny thought back to the last time she could remember her 'monthly gift'. "I didn't even notice…"

Ducky chuckled softly, leading her to the chair by his desk. "Just sit tight here, won't take but a moment, and we can run these on up to Abby."

Jenny gripped Jethro's hand tightly as Ducky took the blood, settling comfortably into his side. She waited until the ME left for Abby's lab to broach the subject that had been eating at her. "Jethro…I really am sorry, about this past week. I don't know what came over me. I was angry at you Sunday for that stunt Tony pulled with the press on your last case, and then it all just…spilled over, I guess."

He merely smiled, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "You don't have to apologize, Jenny. It's okay." He pressed a finger over her lips, shushing her protest. "What's done is done. Shannon broke my nose, Sarah gave me a black eye, you split my lip. It's okay."

Jenny let out a disbelieving chuckle. "Shannon broke your nose?"

"I, um…I may have told her I thought she was pretty when she was on a rampage about how all of her clothes didn't fit." Jet ducked his head sheepishly. "And Sarah gave me the black eye because I told her I wasn't going out at 0400 hours to buy Fudge Ripple Ice Cream."

She laughed along with him for a few minutes, relaxing back in his comfortable embrace. "Well, I promise I'll try my best not to castrate you in the coming months, if we do happen to be having a baby."

Jet let a low chuckle rumble through his chest in response.

"Do you want another child?" Jenny glanced up at him, voicing her thoughts aloud.

"I'm happy with you and Jake, but I always promised Kelly she'd have a few little brothers and sisters. I—I know she's not here now to see them, but…I mean, Jake's always wanted a little sister, to protect." He lifted his shoulders in a half shrug. "I want you guys to be happy."

Jenny nodded after a moment, satisfied with his answer. "Boy or girl?"

"Healthy." He met her quizzical gaze, shrugging again. "The doc told us Kelly was gonna be a boy, and Sarah didn't even find out what Jake was gonna be."

The doors to Autopsy slid open with a hiss, bringing both of them out of their conversation. Jenny tilted her head, staring expectantly at the ME.

Ducky's face creased in a wide grin as he nodded slightly. "Congratulations, Jennifer, Jethro. You'll be adding an addition to your family sometime later this year."

"Do you know how far along?" Jethro spoke quietly, his arms circling Jenny's waist from behind.

"I can't tell that from a blood test, you'd need to get an ultrasound." Ducky stepped forward and gave her a tight hug. "Congratulations, my dear."

* * *

It had taken a little string pulling for Jenny to get a rush appointment with her doctor the next day. Jethro sat by her side in the waiting room, twining his fingers through hers. He reached out and settled a comforting hand over her incessantly tapping foot, catching her gaze. "It's gonna be okay, Jen."

She smiled nervously in reply, her grip on his hand tightening slightly. "I—I know, I just…"

He chuckled softly, shifting to wrap his arm around her shoulder. "C'mere. We're gonna be just fine, Jenny, I promise."

"Jennifer Shepard?" A nurse poked her head out of the door. Jenny stood, still gripping Jet's hand tightly. "The doctor will see you now."

"Ah, Jenny, it's been a while." Dr. Alex Wilson smiled brightly and clasped Jenny's hand in a brief handshake, her high heels clicking on the floor as she walked next to them. "And I assume this is your, ah…"

"This is my fiancée, Jethro." They followed the doctor into an exam room, settling into the chairs as Dr. Wilson calmly flipped through the file in her hands.

"Lovely to meet you, Jethro." Dr. Wilson leaned back against the counter, eyeing her patient. "So, what brings you here so early on a Friday?"

"I—that is, we, are having a baby. I need an ultrasound to, um…check on things."

The doctor smiled again, gesturing to the exam table. "If you'll just hop up there and lift up your shirt, we can go ahead and check how this baby's doing."

Jenny let out a low hiss of breath as the cold gel was spread over her lower abdomen, gripping Jet's hand tightly. They both watched the screen as Dr. Wilson moved the ultrasound probe over Jenny's skin.

"Looks like you're about eight weeks along, Jenny." Dr. Wilson moved the probe again slightly to the side, her eyebrows raising. "Huh."

"What? Is something wrong?" Jenny sounded a little panicked, her grip on Jethro's hand tightening.

"No, no, nothing wrong." The doctor grinned, tilting the screen slightly. "If you look right…there, you'll see that you two should be expecting multiple surprises in about eight months. You're having twins."

"I…what?" Jenny stared in shock at the screen in front of her, showing two small shapes with vaguely beating hearts. "Twins?" She felt a low chuckle rumble through Jethro's chest, tilting her head back to glare at him. "I don't know why you're laughing, mister."

"Well, Duck always did say we never did anything by halves." He grinned happily at her, pressing his lips to her forehead in a gentle kiss.

Jenny laughed along with him, shaking her head as they left the doctor's office with a few copies of the ultrasound picture. "You're telling Abby."

"What?" He stopped dead in the middle of the parking lot, looking positively terrified. "Jenny, no…she's gon-."

"She's going to flip out, I know, that's why you're telling her." She finished his statement matter-of-factly, her lips twisting up in a smirk.

He let out a muffled groan, catching up to her quickly, his hand automatically falling to the small of her back. "Fine, then you call and tell Jackson."

"What?" This time, it was her turn to stop dead, halfway ducked into the yellow Charger.

They drove away to his roar of laughter, heading back to NCIS.

* * *

Jake eyed Jet and Jenny quizzically as they both sat him down on the couch in the living room, looking extremely serious. "What's going on? If you're mad about the paintball fight in the garage, it was totally Tony's idea, I promise!"

Jenny laughed softly, shaking her head. "You're not in trouble, Jake. Your Dad and I have something to tell you."

Jake sat up abruptly, surprised. "Oh. I thought…you're still getting married, right? And you're still gonna adopt me, right?"

"Yes, J, we're still getting married, and Jen's still going to adopt you, son. Just sit back and listen a moment, okay?"

J.J. let out a low sigh, relaxing back into the couch. "Okay, fine."

Jenny twined her fingers through Jet's, smiling widely as she looked the boy about to become her son in the eye. "Jake, Jet and I were trying to tell you that I'm pregnant, honey. You're going to have a couple of brothers or sisters sometime around Halloween."

They watched with growing amusement as a number of expressions flickered across J.J.'s face, finally settling on excited. "I get a baby sister?"

"Two." Jet squeezed Jenny's hand, the corner of his mouth turning up in a smirk.

"Huh?"

"We're having twins, J.J." Jenny smiled at him kindly.

Jake let out a happy yell, launching himself forward to wrap his arms tightly around both of their waists. "ThankyouThankyouThankyou! I've always wanted a baby sister or brother and now I get two! Wait 'til I tell Zach, he'll be super jealous, he's only got a baby brother!"

Jet laughed, bending down to lift Jake up in the air, hugging him tightly. "And I'm sure you'll be the best big brother anyone could ask for, kid."

Jake grinned happily, twisting in his father's embrace to wrap his arms around Jenny in a hug, muffling his voice against her shoulder. "I love you, Mom."

Jenny looked over at Jethro, tears shining in her eyes as she pressed a light kiss to the side of his head, murmuring a soft reply. "I love you too, Jake."

J.J. lifted his head from her shoulder to meet her bright green eyes. "So you've been all crazy this month 'cause you're pregnant?"

The Gibbs house rang with Jet's loud laughs as the family settled down to watch their customary movie, content in the knowledge that they would be expanding soon.

* * *

_**A/n: So, there we go, Chapter 8. I managed to finish this bugger in half a day, which is good, considering that the first half has been sitting on my laptop since I posted Chapter 7. I know it's a bit shorter than the others, but I needed to get this bit of the plot hashed out to continue with the storyline I've got planned.**_

_**Most of the case-related dialogue is from Season 4 Episode Sandblast, if you hadn't noticed.**_

_**Please review, they're always appreciated!**_

_**-meg.**_


	9. Chapter 9

**_A/n; Here it is, the long awaited 9th chapter of TGS! _**

**_Holy mother of all living things, this took forever to crank out._**

**_Read and enjoy!_**

**_Disclaimer: Not mine, though I borrow them to write sometimes. :(

* * *

_**

9. Cigars and Czechs

Jenny sat back on the couch in her office, enjoying a rare moment of peace in her hectic day. She let out a happy sigh, wiggling her freed toes, glad to have the killer heels off.

Her office door slammed open, making her jump nearly half a foot in the air. "Jethro…honestly, can't you ever knock?"

He merely rolled his eyes in reply, sauntering over to the couch to slump into a seat next to her, his arm slipping around her shoulders and pulling her back against a warm body.

She smiled at the feel of a few gentle kisses pressed to the back of her neck. "Cold cases really that boring, Jethro?"

He grinned against her neck, letting out a vague grunt in answer as he splayed one hand protectively over her abdomen. "How you feelin', Jen?"

"We're just fine, Jethro, no gymnastics. Apparently these little ones are a bit sleepy today." Jenny covered his hand with hers, smiling as she leaned back into his embrace. They both sat, comfortable and relaxed, until a quiet knock on her office door caught their attention.

"Come in." Jenny raised her voice just enough to carry to the door.

Cynthia poked her head through after a moment, making no comment on her boss' current lack of productivity. "Agent Fornell from the FBI here to see you, ma'am. He says he's looking for Agent Gibbs too."

Jenny raised her eyebrows, leaning her head back to look at Gibbs, who shrugged. "Haven't pissed the Bureau off lately, Jen, none of our cases have been connected."

They reluctantly separated as Jenny went to sit behind her desk again, taking the discarded heels with her. "Show him in, Cynthia."

Tobias Fornell sauntered in the office, both hands stuffed in the pockets of his long overcoat. His grey-green eyes flickered over Gibbs sitting on the couch, then over to Jenny behind her desk, a slight smirk tugging at his lips. He turned to Gibbs, fiddling with something in the pocket of his coat. "I hear congratulations are in order, Jethro."

"Hm?" Gibbs tilted his head to the side, deliberately playing dumb.

Fornell's smirk widened as he drew two cigars from his pocket, tossing them unceremoniously on the couch next to Jet. "Em's happy to have a few new cousins to play with. She said she expects an invite to the wedding from Uncle Jethro and Miss Jenny." He smiled slightly, winking at Jenny.

"How did you…" Jenny gave him a blank look, shaking her head after a long moment. "I didn't think we were _that_ obvious."

"You weren't. Emily met a new friend at school. A very nice young man, goes by J.J. He was talking at show and tell about how he was getting some baby brothers or sisters. After finding out his last name was Gibbs and his mum was the Director of a Federal Agency, I extrapolated from there." Fornell eyed Jenny's left hand, taking in the small ring there. "Congratulations."

"Emily goes to Hargrove?"

Fornell nodded, shifting uncomfortably. "It was the only school I was comfortable sending her to, taking my job into account. Emily is in J.J.'s class, apparently."

"Well, then, thank you." Jenny smiled uncertainly back at him, tapping her pen on the desk nervously. "Is there anything else you wanted?"

"I need some help, on a case." Fornell looked over at Gibbs as he spoke.

"You're asking for help?" Jet raised his eyebrows, smirking.

He shrugged, pulling a flash drive out of his pocket. "Crime syndicate. Latest victim is the dependent of a Marine. I…we need some fresh eyes on this, and NCIS is within its rights to join the investigation, considering the status of the latest victim." He handed it over to Jenny, taking a seat in one of the empty chairs.

Jenny plugged the drive into her computer, pulling up the information on the plasma.

Jet stiffened visibly as the first picture came up, revealing a tall, good looking man with an easy smile on his face. Blue-grey eyes stared out of a clean-shaven face, with unruly brown hair falling over his forehead. Gibbs turned to Fornell, his voice a low growl. "Where the hell did you get this?"

Fornell raised his eyebrows slightly at the tone, but plowed on. "Meet Bartholomew James Fisher, Jr…also known as Barty. De facto leader of a Czechian crime syndicate that's been operating on U.S. soil since 1994. Barty Jr. inherited the family business when Daddy Fisher suffered a stroke in '98. He dropped off grid from '99 til about January of 2001, last seen somewhere in Pennsylvania. He and his buddies are back with a drug trafficking ring encompassing three states."

"I know who the hell he is, Tobias. Where the hell did you get this intel?"

"The Agency decided to pass the info off to the Bureau a few months ago. Up until last week, Fisher has been laying relatively low, but we've had three drug-related kills since then. Last one was the daughter of a Gunny, caught in the crossfire between Fisher's group and some members of La Vida Mala. How do you know Barty Fisher?"

His lips twitched in a humorless smirk as he unbuttoned the cuff of his button down, revealing a thin white scar running the length of his forearm. "We've had our differences."

"You…what?"

Gibbs sighed. "J.J. isn't my biological son. Barty Fisher dated a good friend of mine a while back and then ditched. J.J. was the result. I adopted him as my son; I've been the one around as the father figure his whole life. Fisher showed up with his goons when Jake was 2 or 3, and it ended in a knife fight between Fisher and myself. He's got a nice little souvenir from it, too." He shrugged. "Anyways, not relevant. What do you need from us?"

Fornell shrugged helplessly. "A fresh set of eyes? We're not getting anywhere Gibbs, and people are dying."

Jenny glanced over at Jet, inclining her head to the side. "I don't see any problems with a joint op."

Gibbs nodded. "We can take a look, but I'm not promising anything."

"You've got connections in La Vida Mala, Gibbs. That's what we need."

"Ah, El Gordo." Gibbs grinned, reclining back with his hands behind his head. "I'll have McGee look into it."

"Appreciate it. Don't be a stranger, Emily misses her Uncle Jethro, and I'm sure she wouldn't mind getting to spend some time with Jacob."

"I'll give ya a call, Tobias."

Jenny moved back over to the couch as Fornell shut the door, settling back against Jet's torso with a long sigh. "You never said you knew Jake's father."

He smiled humorlessly again, wrapping his arms around her waist. "I don't. He's a dirtbag and a scoundrel, and he's not Jake's father, I am."

She shifted, tilting her head back to meet his eyes. "You know what I meant."

"He tried to come and take Jake back, must've been around the time Barty Sr.'s condition worsened. He needed an heir to the family, and Jake was ready made. I wasn't about to let them take him. That's why Jake speaks Czech."

"So why the sudden re-appearance?"

"I dunno, Jen. It doesn't make sense. Barty Fisher was a gun-runner when I knew him, not a drug dealer."

"So then why is he…" Jenny trailed off as her intercom buzzed. She stood and walked over, hitting the speaker button. "Yes, Cynthia?"

"_Director, there's a situation developing over at Hargrove Academy. Agent DiNozzo said to pass on the message, one of his friends in Metro PD called him about Jake."_

"Shit." Gibbs was off the couch like a shot, already heading for the door.

"Jethro, stop."

He paused mid step, spinning to glare at Jenny. "_What_, Jen?"

"I'm stopping you from going off hair-trigger and exacerbating the situation, Jethro. Get your team together, we'll head over and figure out where to go from there."

* * *

"What have we got, DiNozzo?"

"Six confirmed hostiles, surrounding the Kindergarten and First Grade wings. The men are speaking a language the interpreter doesn't understand, and they refuse to answer in English. Ziva's over there now running through her fifty or so languages." Tony ran a hand through his hair distractedly, walking alongside Gibbs and Jenny.

Ziva jogged up as Tony finished speaking, shaking her head. "I tried everything I know. They had a minimal response to Russian, which makes me think it's probably something similar."

"Jen, it has to be them. They must've found J again." Jet's hand twitched at his holster. "I can go talk to them."

"Right, _talk_. You're going to go in there half-cocked, guns blazing and get yourself or a kid killed. We need to negotiate with them. We know Jake and Emily and their classmates are in there, and we've got a fair idea of who their captors are. All we need to do is get them talking." Jenny set a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Jethro, we can get everyone out of this safely. We just need to talk."

"_Negotiate?_ You don't negotiate with Barty Fisher, Jen! Believe me, I've tried. I'm going in." He wrenched his arm out of her grasp, taking a step towards the school when he was blocked again by Jenny's slight form. "Jen…"

"You seem to be laboring under the delusion that you're more stubborn than I am, which we all know is quite untrue. You are going to stay right here and wait while we establish contact with a negotiator and find out what they want." Jenny's eyes flashed with a hidden fire as she drew herself up to her full height, staring Gibbs down impressively.

Jet opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again, clearly intending to say something, before he shut it again with a distasteful look, stepping back to lean against the NCIS truck. "Fine. One hour, then I'm going in whether they like it or not."

* * *

J.J. Gibbs was in trouble. Not the usual trouble, the kind you could get out of if you knew how to talk to Principal Ford right, but the kid of trouble his dad got into at work. People dying trouble.

He and Emily had been sitting at the art station with Max and Theo drawing pictures to go with their stories when those men walked in.

It wasn't like Jake had _tried_ to listen in on their argument with Ms. Kline, he just picked up on the fact that the men were speaking Czech. He muttered something vague about getting better crayons from the cubby-holes at the front of the classroom and slipped away from the art station, ambling his way up to his cubby, cocking an ear to listen to the argument as he pretended to rummage through his cubby for something.

"_Tato žena neví nic . Musíme najít toho chlapce . Použít obrázek ."_ The taller of the two men turned away from Ms. Kline to mutter in his companion's ear. (This woman doesn't know anything. We have to find the boy. Use the picture.)

Jake swallowed, keeping his back turned to the two men as he walked back towards the art station, gripping the scissors he had obtained in his fists hidden under his hoodie.

"You there, boy! Stop! I haf…I have question for you." The tall man spoke sharply, silencing the chatter of Jake's classmates.

Jake froze, still facing away from the men. "Who, me?" He gripped the scissors tighter, listening with all his might for the man's footsteps.

"_Ano—_I mean, yes, you." The man's voice was much closer now, sounding above Jake's head. "I—we are…we look for boy, name J.J. He is friend of ours, yes?"

"I—I don't know any J.J." Jake stammered out an answer, his shoulders hunched. "C—can I go back to my picture now, mister?"

The other man let out a low growl, walking towards J.J. and the tall man quickly. "_Lže ! Nenech ho trik !" (He lies! Do not let him fool you!)_

"Whydja say that, Jake? Your name's J.J., sure as my name's Theo!" Theo looked up, his hazel eyes bright with confusion.

Things after that happened very fast. The tall man yelled in anger, reaching out for J.J. Jake spun around on his heel like Tony taught him, the scissors snapping out and plunging deep into the tall man's thigh with a weird squelchy noise. The tall man's friend shouted and pulled a gun out, but J.J. was already sprinting across the room, screaming "Duck!" as he went.

And that was why Jake was now hiding in the recesses of the unused Janitor's closet under the 4th grade wing's stairs. The tall man's friend had tried to chase him but couldn't keep up with the maze like hallways of the Academy. He had apparently called in quite a few more friends, as J.J. could now hear quite a few more loud voices speaking in Czech as they searched the building for him.

He sniffed, hugging his knees uncomfortably as he huddled behind a really, really old desk, probably from when the school opened. He had sort of barricaded the door with another old desk, but there was no guarantee the rickety old thing would hold up. It wasn't like the desk he and Jet built for his bedroom. He sniffed again, reaching up to wipe his nose and grimacing at the crimson blood on his hand. He really wished this closet still had janitor stuff in it, so then he could wash his hand off, but evidently the school was using it to store old desks instead.

He really, really wanted to go home.

* * *

"What do you mean, they only want to talk to one person? How in the hell do they know who's here and who isn't?" Jenny frowned at the FBI Negotiator standing in front of her. The man shrugged a little helplessly, gesturing to the phone in his hand.

"Sorry, Director, they said they'd only talk to a Lee Collins?"

Jethro perked up at that, vaulting off the back of the NCIS truck. "Lee Collins? You're sure?"

"Yes sir. They were very specific. They'll only talk to Lee Collins."

Gibbs nodded vaguely, reaching out for the phone. "I'll take care of it."

"Sir—you're not a trained hostage negotiator! I can't just hand over this to you!"

"I'm Lee Collins!"

"Hold on. Can you wait just a moment? I need to talk to him, really quick." Jenny intervened rapidly, stepping between Jethro and the negotiator before things got ugly. She took Gibbs by the arm, leading him a few yards away. "What the _hell_ are you doing? I told you I'd handle this!"

"Jen, they're asking for Lee Collins, I'm trying to follow their demands!"

She threw her hands up, staring at him oddly. "Did you hit your head or something?"

"What? No."

"Then why are you saying that your name's Lee Collins?"

"Because to Barty Fisher and his gang, I _am_ Lee Collins. We had to explain my presence around Sarah and Jake somehow, so we made up a retired Marine uncle come to visit in an effort to scare them off. They're asking for Lee Collins, which means it's Fisher, which means I'm the only one who can do this. Jen…you gotta trust me. I know how to fix this, I promise."

Jenny stared at him a moment longer, nodding sharply. "Alright. You keep me in the loop, though."

Jet nodded, walking back over to the negotiator. "I honestly am Lee Collins, sir. I'm a relative of one of the kids inside the school. They must think I've got something they need."

Jenny walked up next to him, jerking her head in a nod when the negotiator gave her a questioning look. "Do it."

He sighed, throwing up his hands exasperatedly. "Fine. Don't see why you people won't let me do my job. I'm not dealing with the repercussions when they realize you aren't Collins. You're on your own."

Gibbs snatched the phone with a roll of his eyes, snapping it open and dialing the last call received. "_To je Lee Collins . Co chceš ?" (This is Lee Collins. What do you want?)_

"**Collins . Mysleli jsme , že byste sem, potom co se stalo tak hezká." (Collins. We thought you would not come here, after what happened to the pretty one.)**

Jet set the phone on speaker, sitting on the bumper of the truck. _"Teď jsem tu já . Co chceš ?" _(I'm here now. What do you want?)

"**Tak tvrdý . Nikdo nic neříká ?" (So blunt. No small talk?) **The man on the other end of the line chuckled, continuing after a moment. "**Chci toho chlapce . Je to můj syn ." (I want the boy. He's my son.)**

Gibbs eyes darkened in anger. "The _hell _he is!" The repeated chuckle from the phone seemed to enrage him more. "_Nikdy nebude váš syn! Nemáš nárok na něj! Seru na tebe!" (He's not your son! You have no claim to him! Fuck you!)_

Ziva winced sharply, having grasped enough of the conversation to figure out what Gibbs had said. The team turned back to the phone as the man's voice issued out of it again, ice cold.

"**Jestli je chceš dívat takhle , pak . Jednu hodinu . Chci tady ten kluk , nebo začnu zabíjet děti ." (If that is the way you see it, then. One hour. I want the boy here, or I start killing children.) **He paused for effect, repeating his threat after a moment. **"One hour, Collins, or ti malí (little ones) start coming out in body bags. Your choice." **

The line went dead with a sharp click.

"What did he say, Jethro?"

"He…they want Jake, or they start killing kids." Gibbs ran a shaking hand over his face. "I don't get how they don't already have him. He should be at school, and they've got the damn place on lockdown!"

"Maybe he got away?" McGee ventured a suggestion after a long silence, glancing over at Gibbs. "He knows how to fight, if he had the element of surprise or figured out what was going on he could have escaped before they closed off the classroom and hid somewhere."

"I…Jethro, that makes sense. Jake understands Czech, enough that he'd know what was going on as soon as they came looking for him." Jenny glanced over at McGee, then back to Jet, nodding. "You know he's excellent at hiding, he's probably still inside the school, hiding somewhere."

"That doesn't help, we still don't know where he is!" Jet threw up his hands, looking furious. "Not to mention the fact that there's no way in hell I'm even going to consider handing my son off to that bastard!"

Tony saw Jenny's eyes flash in anger and rapidly interceded before things dissolved into an argument again. "Boss, that wasn't what Jenny meant. If we can figure out where Jake's hiding, then we can slip in, get him, and attack the baddies from inside the school."

"DiNozzo, this isn't one of your goddamn movies! This is real life, dammit! You ca-." Gibbs was cut off as Jenny reached over, covering his mouth with her hand.

"He's not looking at it like a movie, it's a valid hostage rescue technique, if you would stop going off hair-trigger long enough to remember your training." Her voice was low and flat, her eyes flickering with a barely withheld temper. "You go off on someone again, and I'm taking you off this case and having you escorted off the scene."

Jet held her gaze for a long pause, the tension evident throughout the group, before he nodded slowly. He stepped back once Jenny released him, sitting on the bumper of the truck again with his arms folded.

"Awkward. Anyways, as I was saying, we need a blueprint of the school to figure out where Mini-Boss is hiding. Then, we slip in the back entrance of the school, find Jake, and take out the perps. Easy." Tony quickly broke the uncomfortable silence over the group, outlining his plan rapidly.

McGee wrangled a blueprint of the school from the FBI, spreading it out on the bumper of the truck. "Hey, wait…where's Boss?"

"What?" Jenny looked over from her conversation with Ziva on the best entry point into the school.

"I—Gibbs is gone, Jenny."

Tony shook his head, looking up from strapping on his vest. "Nonsense. He was right be…hind me." He glanced over his shoulder, letting out a muffled groan. "Son of a bitch."

"We have to stop him. This could turn into a bloodbath if he goes in th—" Jenny was cut off as the negotiator's phone rang out loudly from where it lay forgotten on the back of the truck. "Hello?"

"_We are sending the children out. Mr. Collins graciously decided to trade his life for theirs. Do not try anything stupid, or he gets his brains blown all over the wall. You understand me?"_

"I…what?"

The low accented voice on the other end of the line broke off into a menacing chuckle. "_Your Mr. Collins, he trade himself for ti malí (little ones)…he trade himself for the children. We are sending them out now." _The line went dead with a click.

"Jenny?" Tony's voice came to her as if from far away. "Hey, Jenny, why don't you sit down?" Gentle hands gripped her shoulders, and she responded vaguely when the hands led her to a bench nearby. Cool fingers pried the phone out of her hands, and she heard Tony mumbling orders to McGee and Ziva over her bowed head. Suddenly, a worried face with bright hazel eyes interspersed itself into her field of vision. "Jenny?"

"He…they've got Jethro…we…" She couldn't seem to make her brain form a complete sentence.

"I know, it's gonna be okay, Jenny. We've got this. FBI already has all the kids. Nobody's hurt."

"Jethro…"

"I know, Jenny, we'll get him outta this. Trust me. Bossman's done crazier stuff than this before and gotten out without a scratch."

* * *

J.J. lifted his head up, listening as the sounds permeating through the air vents changed. Shouting in Czech, and what sounded like a lot of shuffling feet. What was going on?

"_Jacob."_

He jumped a mile as the cold voice issued through the school's PA system.

"_Jacob, I know you can hear me. We have let all of your little friends go. You do not have to hide any longer."_

J.J. hugged his knees tighter. If all his friends were safe, then he could ignore the scary man. There wasn't anything they could say that would make him leave this hiding spot.

It was silent for a few minutes, and then there was a low screech as the PA system started up again.

"_You still do not want to come out of your hiding spot?" _The cold voice laughed. _"I have someone here who wants to say hello to you." _There was a low rustling sound, and then muffled words followed by a slap.

The next voice that issued from the system made Jake's blood run cold. _"Don't listen to him, Jake! You stay where you are! 'Tonio's looking for you, he'll get you ou—" _Jet's voice was cut off sharply by something that sounded like a fist hitting flesh, and then a low moan.

The cold man's voice came over the intercom again. _"This smetí (filth) who calls himself your father, he gave himself up so I would let your little friends go, boy. If you want to save him, you have five minutes to come to the office. For every ten seconds you are not here…" _He paused, and the sounds of fists hitting flesh sounded again, punctuated by restrained moans of pain. "_Well, let us just say it will not be pleasant for Mr. Collins here." _

The intercom did not click off again, rather broadcasting the sounds of Jet's beating throughout the school. J.J. curled up in a tighter ball, clamping his hands over his ears to try and block out the noise. He was going to stay here, just like Jet said.

* * *

Ziva flanked McGee as they crept up to an ill-used service entrance near one of the stairwells at Hargrove, both wary for any sign of the Czech gangsters. Ziva crouched by the doorknob, her lockpicks already halfway on their way to opening the door.

"Zi…" McGee glanced over his shoulder nervously, guarding her back as she picked the lock.

"One moment, Tim. I have just about…got it! We're in."

They slipped in the school quietly, moving along the old back hallway near some of the no longer used janitor supply rooms. McGee stopped dead when a pained moan drifted through the air. "What was that?"

Ziva froze next to him, her brow furrowed. "What was what?"

Tim shushed her with a finger to his lips, cocking an ear. "Listen."

The disembodied moan sounded again, slightly louder. McGee glanced around, his eyes alighting on a small speaker box set in the wall. "It's the sound system."

"Whoever that is, they sound as if they are being tortured." Ziva's eyes scanned the area analytically.

"Probably Boss."

The Israeli nodded absentmindedly, crouching down to examine something on the floor. "Tim…what does this look like to you?" She pulled out her flashlight, muting the beam with the fingers of her hand.

McGee narrowed his eyes, crouching next to her. "Looks like…blood. Blood droplets." He rocked back on his heels, looking around them. "There's a trail. It stops right…there." He ended up pointing at a supply closet door under the stairwell.

Ziva gestured for him to go ahead, holding out her SIG to cover him. He jiggled the doorknob once, then twice, shaking his head. "Something's jammed behind it. Gonna have to pop it." He took a few steps back, hunching forward as he jogged back at the door, hitting it precisely with his shoulder to pop the lock out. "Okay, got it. It's been blocked by an old desk…Jake, you in here?"

There was some muffled shuffling, and then a sniff. "Tim?"

McGee let out a sigh of relief, lowering his gun. "Jake. C'mere, kid. We've been looking all over for you."

Jake scrambled out of the room and into McGee's arms, shaking and crying.

"Shhh…J, it's okay, you're okay buddy." Tim rocked back on his heels in his crouched position, rubbing J.J.'s back slowly to calm him down. "Hey, it's okay buddy."

Jake finally released his death grip on Tim's neck, stepping back. "Did you get Jet?"

McGee ignored the question, seeing the blood all over his hands and the knees of his jeans. "Jake, you're not hurt, are you?"

The boy shook his head, raising a hand as if to scratch his nose before noticing the blood there. "Oh. 'S not mine. I stabbed one of the bad guys to get—" He broke off as a loud shout of pain resounded throughout the school, his face going ghost white. "Jet!"

Ziva reached out and caught him around the waist, stopping Jake from sprinting off. "Whoa there cowboy. Tony and Agent Fornell are trying to rescue Jet. You need to come with us."

"No! No! They've got Jet! I gotta go help Jet!" J.J. struggled furiously in her grip. "The cold man said he'd kill Jet if I don't go to the office! He said I had five minutes to decide and it's almost been five minutes!" His grey eyes were wide and terrified. "We hafta save him!"

"Jake, Tim and I promised Jenny we would find you and bring you to her safe. Tony and Fornell are saving Jet. He'll be okay." Ziva tried to tighten her hold on the increasingly agitated Jake.

Jake twisted furiously, snapping his head back sharply into Ziva's nose, breaking free of her grip and sprinting off towards the office. "No! I hafta go help him! They're gonna kill him."

Ziva groaned lowly, putting a hand up to her nose. She waved off McGee's concern. "Go, Tim! We have to get him!"

* * *

Jet spat out a small dribble of blood as Fisher's goons stepped back to take a break from whaling at him, smirking crookedly at the Czech. "Told you Jake wouldn't come."

He sucked in a pained breath, mentally categorizing his injuries. The goons had kicked out his bad knee to get him to talk to Jake over the intercom, and he'd been punched and kicked numerous times after that. He probed at a loose tooth near his lip, frowning. A cut over his eye dripping blood obstructed his vision somewhat on that side, while the other eye was beginning to swell shut. His hands were hog tied behind him, and one of the goons had kicked them squarely into the back of the chair, he could feel a few of them broken.

Fisher eyed him calculatingly, scowling at the PA mike sitting on the table in front of them. Clearly, the broadcast of Collins' beating had done them no good. "And just what do you propose, Mr. Collins?"

"How about you let him go?" Tony spoke up from the side door of the office, flanked by Tobias Fornell.

"And why would I do that? He makes an excellent bargaining chip." Fisher smiled dangerously, cutting the ties holding Gibbs to the chair and dragging him to his feet, a sharp edged K-Bar held across his throat while one of the goons aimed a gun at Jet's head. The Czech and Gibbs did a sort of comical half shuffle walk backwards out of the office, while the remaining goon tried to keep Tony and Fornell at bay.

"Let him go, Fisher. We've already located Jake, he's safe and sound, and you're not getting him. Let Collins go." Tony ignored the goon pointing a gun in his face, keeping his gun trained steadily on Fisher.

"No, I don't think I will." Fisher grinned rather maliciously, continuing to drag Gibbs out into the spacious hallway.

"You leave my dad alone!" A shout resounded from just down the hall. Jake ran straight for Fisher, lunging for his legs.

The goon holding the gun on Gibbs dropped his aim, bulling into Jake in a hard tackle that sent both of them crashing into the wall. The gun skated out of his hand and down the hall, where McGee trapped it with a foot.

"Jake!" Gibbs hunched down slightly, bulling his head up and back into Fisher's face as he saw his son hit the wall and crumple into a heap. Fisher shouted in pain, the knife dropping from his hand.

Two gunshots rang out in quick succession. Fisher slumped to the floor with a shoulder wound, while his goon crumpled to the floor with a headshot. McGee subdued the third goon, woozy with a lump on his head from his recent contact with the brick wall.

Gibbs was already sinking to his knees next to Jake's prone form, struggling with the ties that held his hands behind his back. "Jake! No…no no no… don't do this to me, Jake…wake up, please wake up."

Tony left Fornell to restrain Fisher, kneeling at his boss' side and pulling out his camp knife with a snick, cutting the bonds. "C'mon, Pintsize, wake up."

Jet pulled his hands free almost before Tony finished cutting the bonds, patting down Jake, checking for injuries. "Jake, please wake up. C'mon…wake up, Jake." Tears shone in his good eye. "Jake..." He cradled his son's head to his chest, patting his face, arms, trying to wake him up.

* * *

"Nasty concussion and a dislocated shoulder from his one-way trip into the wall. Your son will be fine in a week or so. His father, on the other hand…mild concussion, probably from repeated hits to the head, multiple lacerations and contusions, and a few fractured ribs and broken fingers. He'll be back to his grumpy self in no time." Dr. Brad Pitt gave Jenny a reassuring smile.

"When will Jake wake up?"

The doctor frowned, glancing down at his watch. "If everything is as alright as the CT scan shows, in about an hour. His body merely set itself on a sort of 'auto-pilot' to protect itself from brain trauma. He'll be just fine, ma'am."

Jenny nodded, running a shaky hand through her hair. "Where are they?"

"We gave your husband a mild sedative to stitch him up, so we put them in the same recovery room. 104, right down this hall and to the left." He smiled. "Shall I tell your ah… extended family in the waiting room?"

Jenny smiled halfheartedly, nodding absently. "Yes, thank you. Can you ask them to give me a few minutes, though?"

He nodded. "Ten minutes. And we'll ah…just, give you a little leeway with the visitor limit, hm?"

She nodded absently, already walking to the hospital room. The sight of her husband attempting to disentangle himself from the IV's in his arm brought a faint smile to her face. "Jethro…you're supposed to be sedated."

He froze, looking for all the world like a small child with his hand caught in the cookie jar. "I…I wanted to check on Jake."

"Mmmhm. Get back in that bed." Jenny gave him a gentle nudge back to his bed. "You have a concussion, you need to rest."

"But…Jake." Jet gestured helplessly at the prone boy in the bed next to him.

"He's fine. Rather nasty concussion and a dislocated shoulder from his heroic save-the-day charge. Wonder who he learned that from?" She gave Jet an admonishing look.

"I…um, no idea."

"Huh. Go figure." Jenny dragged a chair in between their beds, relaxing back with a sigh. Her eyes flickered over first Jake and then Jet's bodies, checking for injuries. She frowned at the bruises and cuts on Jet, shaking her head. "You know you wouldn't be tied down in a hospital bed if you hadn't gone in with all guns blazing like I told you not to."

He had the grace to look faintly embarrassed. "I…I figured I was a higher value target. I just wanted to get those kids out of there."

"And the fact that you nearly gave me a heart attack?"

"I—I'm sorry." He looked up at her, blinking through tears. "I—I can't lose…you and Jake, you're all I have. You're my family. I couldn't have another…I can't lose you like Shan and Kel."

"You aren't going to lose us, Jethro!" Jenny leaned forward, gripping his good hand tightly in hers. "You can't wrap us all in bubble wrap. Jethro, things are going to happen, you know that as well as I do. But we'll always be here. I promise."

The stirring of the third occupant of the room broke both of their concentration. "Jake?"

"Mmmm…hurts." Jake blinked his eyes open and promptly shut them again, his face screwed up in pain.

Jenny squeezed Jet's hand and moved to Jake's side, stroking her hand gently through his hair. "Where's it hurt, honey?"

"Shoulder…too bright…head hurts too."

"You dislocated your shoulder, J. It's gonna hurt for a few days, the doc had to pop it back in place." Jenny soothed him with a light kiss on his forehead, keeping her fingers running through his hair. "The doctor will be here in just a minute, and he'll give you something for the pain, okay?"

"M'kay." Jake almost seemed to drift off again, blinking his grey eyes open at the last minute. "Jet? 'S Dad okay?"

"I'm right here, J." Gibbs spoke up from his bed.

"Saved Dad." Jake trailed off into more sleepy mumbles, lulled back into a light doze.

* * *

_Two Days Later_

"Mom, this thing itches." Jake frowned unhappily at the stiff sling his shoulder was in, fiddling around with the strap around his neck.

"Don't mess with it, J." Jenny pushed his hands away, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"But…"

"Listen to your mom, Jake." Jet walked up behind her, his own hand encased in a light cast. The worst of his cuts had stitches, but most of his bruises were already beginning to heal. "Don't mess with it."

J.J. scowled, deciding that arguing was not worth his time. "Can I leave?"

"Always so eager to leave us!" Dr. Pitt walked through the door, tutting lightly. "Must be my engaging personality."

Jake smiled at the ER doctor, rolling his eyes goodnaturedly. "So can I go home, Dr. Brad?"

Pitt paused by his bedside, lifting his thumb and index finger to his chin in a comical pantomime of someone thinking. "Well…your CT scans are clear, and as long as you wear that sling, I don't see a problem with it. You'll have to come back for physical therapy to make sure your shoulder heals properly, but other than that, I think you can go home."

"Yay!" Jake grinned happily, scrambling out of the bed and waiting impatiently by the door while Jenny signed the discharge papers. "C'mon, I wanna go home, Mom!"

"Coming, coming…" Jenny laughed, signing off on the last paper with a flourish. "Well, hopefully we won't be dropping back by here anytime soon." She turned and gave Jet a threatening look as they walked out of the room after Jake.

* * *

The ringing of the doorbell sounded into the living room of the Gibbs home. Jet stood from his seat on the couch. "I'll get it. Probably Abs and the team."

He opened the door slowly, giving a quizzical glance to the three people standing outside. "Tobias."

"Jethro." Fornell bit back a smirk, standing with his hands on Emily's shoulders.

"Diane." The half smile on Gibbs' face faltered slightly.

The redhead's lips twisted in a minute smile. "Emily wanted to come by and make sure Uncle Gibbs and Jake were okay."

"Right." Jet stepped back. "Uh…come on in."

"Hey Uncle Jethro!" Emily hugged his legs tightly as she passed. "Daddy says you look like a meatpacker went after your face. What's a meatpacker?"

"Um…why don't you ask your mum, Em?" Gibbs raised his eyebrow at a smirking Fornell as he passed. "You brought the whole family?"

Fornell shrugged absently. "Diane and I are…trying this again, for Em."

"Huh. You tell me how that one works out. I'm not bein' best man again."

"Are we quite finished talking about me?" Diane stood next to her daughter, her hands on her hips.

"Where's Jake?"

"Ah, right through here. In the living room." He gestured rather weakly, making his way to the living room. "Er…Jen, J, we've got some visitors."

"Jake!" Emily ran past him to Jake sitting on the floor in front of the TV, giving her friend a half hug. "Daddy said you beat up two bad guys!'

Jake flushed red to the roots of his hair, fiddling with his sling absently as he stared at the floor. "Oh. Yeah. I, uh…I stabbed the tall man in Ms. Kline's room, and then I sorta got tackled by one tryin' to save Dad."

Their conversation receded into the background as Jenny stood from her seat on the couch, glancing quizzically between Gibbs, Fornell, and Diane.

"Diane. What a pleasant surprise."

"Jenny." Diane smiled faintly. "I see you've finally domesticated Jethro."

Her lips twitched in a half smirk. "No…not exactly. He still leaves the seat up on the toilet."

"Mmm."

Both redheads turned to find the two men watching them warily.

Jenny broke the silence. "What?"

Fornell shrugged. "Nothing. You look good, Jenny."

"When are you due?" Diane glanced over at Jenny interestedly, gesturing to the slight bump evident.

"Early October."

"Huh. Well, congratulations." The redhead shifted her bag on her shoulder, evidently ready to go. "Oh, and Jethro?"

"Huh?"

"Don't mess this one up. I have a feeling that Tobias, Emily, and I would be the least of your worries if you hurt her."

* * *

"That was nice of them to stop by." Jenny relaxed back into Jet's comfortable embrace on the couch a while later.

"Mmhmm."

Jake had long since disappeared upstairs to play in his room with Gambit, leaving the two of them alone.

"Can't believe Fornell and Diane are trying at a relationship again."

Gibbs shrugged. "Tobias said they were trying for Emily."

"Mmhmm." She leaned her head back against his chest, her eyes closed. "She's a cute kid."

"Jen, we're not setting her and Jake up. I'm not doing some arranged marriage."

"What? I just said they're cute together."

"Yeah, and then next you and Diane will be planning weddings and picking out tablecloth colors. No."

She sighed, rolling her eyes. "Fine. I still think they're adorable."

"Yeah, and I think Jake will physically die from embarrassment if you actually tell him that. Right now, he thinks girls have cooties."

"Okay, okay, no arranged marriage for now. But if they're still cute together when they're 20 or so, you can't hold me responsible for my actions."

* * *

**_A/n: Wow, that was long. _**

**_Apparently, that little oneshot I wrote today helped break through my writers block. _**

**_Translations for the Czech parts are in parentheses._**

**_Review, please!_**

**_-meg_**


End file.
